The Kids Aren't Alright
by electricurrentsx
Summary: They had to grow up sometime, right? The Rugrats have finally reached high school and a lot of things have changed. Tommy's parents are suddenly super rich, he's popular, and he has everything he's ever wanted. But is being "All Grown Up" as easy as it seems? From drugs, to sex, to new and old friendships alike; the Rugrats deal with the trials and tribulations of today's youth.
1. Kimi Finster: i

**AN**: Ughhh... I really can't seem to leave this fic alone. I started it a few years ago, probably around my freshman year in high school and I stopped simply because the first few chapters were kicking my ass. But now, having just graduated from high school... things have started to fall together and I know exactly how I want to write it. Kimi's chapter is obviously a victim to my writing style in freshman year, but... enjoy?

ps. -cough- i like reviews and suggestions (flames too, i suppose) -cough-

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Kimi Finster.  
August 28th 2009

"Kimi, Telephone!"

Ugh… Chaz. My stepdad's nasally voice travels so well, I swear. He's a pretty weird guy. But then again, as the Finsters, we're a pretty weird family.

I'm Kimi Finster, by marriage. When my mom married Chaz Finster, I got a brother along with the last name. His name is Charles. We used call him Chuckie until 8th grade when but he grew out of it along with his awkward shyness. One thing he didn't lose was his best friend Tommy Pickles, who is also my boyfriend. At first Chuckie thought it was a little weird that we were dating, but after a while he just stopped mentioning it and I figured he'd just gotten used to the idea. I've been noticing though, Charlie's been acting weird whenever when Tommy comes around – and mostly it's only been when Tommy's around me. Eventually after weeks of over-thinking the situation, I just chalked it up to Chuckie being jealous of us being so close.

But lately I'm just not sure about anything. I've been thinking-

"**KIMI! TELEPHONE!**" Chaz shouted again.

For a split second, I wondered who it was. It was probably someone from Tommy's house asking for me. He was having a huge "Back to School" party while his parents were out of town and everyone was going… and because I was the significant other of the popular aspiring film maker, it was kind of important for me to be there too.

So maybe it _was_ Tommy on the phone. When I finally decided to get up to answer it, Chaz burst through the door yacking a mile a minute on the telephone. After a few minutes, he stopped and finally remembered what he'd barged into my room. "It's Suzie." He said, handing me the phone before strolling out. I was kind of shocked because he hadn't even seemed angry because I'd kept him waiting so long. I think it was because Suzie was one of my friends that he liked a lot, so he didn't mind.

I frowned as soon as I placed the phone to my ear, realizing that Chaz hadn't shut the door. With a lazy sigh, I got up and slammed it closed.

"Hello?"

"Hey girl," Suzie seemed kind of tired from her voice. I wondered for a second if she had been to Tommy's but I safely tucked the thought into the back of my mind. "Are you too good to talk to me anymore? You left me talking to the Chaz-man for a good twenty minutes!"

"Sorry..." I let out a guilty laugh. It relieved me that Suzie laughed along with me. "I thought you were Tommy." I admitted quietly.

To which Suzie snorted, "Oh. Damn, you actually thought he'd call you?" Her bitter tone made me frown. Hearing that from her sort of hurt. Suzie must have been able to tell because she waited a few seconds before she continued. "He's kinda busy with his party and all."

I finally decided to ask. "Were you there?"

And Suzie answered back with no hesitation. "I stopped over there for a couple minutes or so but it was boring, so I just left." Slightly relieved and humored, I laughed to myself and fell back into my covers.

"You've got to be kidding me. When are Tommy's parties ever boring?" I asked.

"When everyone's so drunk or high that they don't even seem human anymore. It's like they're speaking a whole different language." We exchanged more quiet laughter. "You know that's not my scene. I'll dance and have a good time, but drugs and alcohol – no thanks, pal."

That was true. Suzie was the most responsible teenager I'd ever met and everyone respected her for that. Sometimes, I could be really jealous of her because she could fit in without even trying to, but I admired her more than I envied her. That's why we were friends. Suzie was a role model, a best friend and a sister all wrapped into one, and she was the only thing keeping me from being like everyone else. "So, what are you doing since you're not over there?" She asked.

I sighed. "The usual."

"The usual as in?" Suzie drawled out slowly.

I quickly opened the bedroom door up and looked out for my dad, making sure he wasn't around to eavesdrop but he was nowhere to be found. "Thinking about this Tommy thing." Shutting the door, I heard Suzie sigh on the other end. "Aw, c'mon Suze, he's my boyfriend. What do you expect me to do?" I whined.

She sucked her teeth, making a clicking sound with her mouth. "I don't know, Kimi… Maybe start considering the situation a little better. You've known Tommy as long as I have. Do you actually he'd cheat on you, or what?"

"No," I said in an unfaltering tone… but to be quite honest, I hadn't really thought out my answer. What girl wanted to think that her boyfriend would be the one to cheat? None of them, and Suzie knew that better than anyone because of her boyfriend Sean, who had cheated on her more than one time.

Tommy never cheated on me at all. But still, some of his actions made me a little suspicious. He was always having these wild parties. The swarms of drunken girls made them a preying ground for cheaters, and Tommy was always taking these pictures there. Some he wouldn't show me. It wasn't very good a ground for me to suspect him of cheating on me but… it was something. "Well… I don't know…" I said to myself, more than Suzie.

"Maybe you should find out for yourself," Suzie finally said while I mused over my own thoughts. Her last sentence caught me by surprise. When I stayed quiet, Suzie said, "And I could come with you, if it makes you feel any better."

And it did make me feel better. A new energy suddenly roused my bones and I hopped up from my bed. "Call me back when you're ready," I said hurriedly, weeding through my closet for my best (and slightly revealing) clothes. I tossed the house phone into the mess of blankets and pulled a silk maroon halter top off of one of the hangers along with a pair of ripped black stockings.


	2. Charlie, not Chuckie Finster: i

**AN**: Here's one of the chapters that I actually like. It was almost too easy to write Chuckie as a character, except the fact that he's way different than he was in the shows. He's grown up, I guess? Anyway, enjoy.

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Charlie Finster.  
August 28th 2009

You know something? It feels good to be popular. Really good. I mean, who would have imagined it? Tommy and I have been friends since forever probably and even growing up we've been pretty likable. Well… Tommy has. I was kind of a nerd back then and I think that over the years, I really held Tommy back from becoming, like… top of the food chain at our school. He didn't really mind it though. So we just stayed unpopular together and that was the way it was until about… ninth grade. The upperclassmen totally liked the fact that Tommy was into film and I stayed right by his side. All thanks to my extreme makeover about two summers ago.

That's right. A complete new me. No more glasses, no more crazy red hair, no more braces, and no more disgusting nasally voice. No more Chuckie Finster. Everyone just calls me Charlie now anyways. It's great. Girls talk to me and guys dap me up instead of trying to beat me up. You wouldn't think it if we weren't close friends, but I probably get more action than any of the guys on the football team. The funny thing about that is I even fucked the senior quarterback's girlfriend in the bathrooms at a football game freshman year. I know, weird right?

What makes it even weirder is that she's at this party right now. Tommy's having this huge back-to-school bash and everybody's here. I mean EVERYONE. Good thing Tommy's mom and dad aren't even considering coming back into town anytime soon. They're on vacation in Cancun or something like that, I don't know. Oh, I forgot to mention that Tommy's family is super rich. After one of his dad's Frankenstein breed of toys actually hit the market, he got his own company and he's been making millions. You should see how much plastic surgery Tommy's mom's been getting. It's weird.

You wanna know something else? Our families used to be so close, and now they're just… not anymore. After Stu got rich, Tommy's parents became like, too good for anybody else. My dad opened his own coffee chain statewide, so you can imagine the competition going on between those two. Phil and Lily's parents got divorced after their dad found out his wife was actually a lesbian (as if it wasn't obvious or anything…) and Angelica's mom and dad got divorced forever ago because Angelica's mom has been cheating on her dad with her assistant Jonathan for like, ever.

Speaking of Angelica, she's nowhere to be seen right now. She normally doesn't come over for Tommy's parties anyway, and if she does decide to show up, she's in the corner with a bunch of rough guys with unkempt facial hair and tattoos. They're mostly all in bands. And they mostly all do drugs.

That's another thing about high school. It introduced me to what everyone was trying to keep us from in grades below – the wonderful world of drugs and alcohol. Ironic, huh? How no matter how much our teachers and parents try to keep us away from things like that, we end up involved with them anyway? Look at me, for example. A few years ago, I was terrified of a lit cigarette. And now?

Well, I'm part of the business. Go ahead, think what you want. I might look like a bad guy because I'm dealing. But listen. It's good money, and with the high school crowd, there's always some kid looking for a new connect. I've got the best shit in town, too. My supplier keeps it coming constantly and he's a close friend of mine, so I have it set up pretty well here.

It's pretty much because of me that everyone's having such a good time here anyways. Take a good look around Tommy's mom and dad's recently purchased abode and you see beer cans and red plastic cups scattered everywhere. In the dining room, people are hitting up the beer pong table that me and Tommy set up earlier. Outside, there are naked bitches dancing around the pool, people making out in the Jacuzzi.

Couples making out on the staircase. I'm pretty sure Dil's up in the theatre with all the stoners because he stole all the rest of the beer when he thought no one saw him. He also bought a little bit of weed off of me earlier. There's a girl passed out in the middle of the living room floor and some girl is throwing up in the kitchen sink while two lesbo chicks are pretty much having sex on the counter with a lot of people watching them.

There's hip-hop music pulsing through each and every room and it's crowded as hell, but a camera flashes close by and I know that Tommy's around somewhere.

I felt someone grab my shoulder and whip me around. Suddenly, a bright, blinding flash goes off in front of my face.

"Ow! Shit, Tommy, warn me when you wanna take a picture, man!" I laugh while I wiped at my eyes, slowly adjusting to the darkness of the room. I look over at my best friend, and roll my eyes when I notice he hadn't heard me. He's too busy scrolling through the countless pictures that he took tonight; pictures of the naked girls by the pool doped up on ecstasy, a few punk looking chicks and a hipster guy doing lines off a Kings of Leon vinyl, some freshman drinking from a beer bong, his little brother Dil smoking a fat blunt. Pictures of one night that could probably ruin someone's life someday.

Finally, he stops on a picture of this skinny blonde who looks slightly familiar to me. She's sitting on Tommy's bed naked with a busted lip, blood running down her chin. Her makeup is smeared and there are these gross ass hickies blistering her pale skin. I notice a bit of white residue around her nose and this gnarly black and blue bruise around her neck. She has a fresh shiner too, like someone tried to knock her lights out. Despite her battered appearance, she's grinning like tonight's the best night of her life. I look up from Tommy's fucked up picture to see the same elated grin on his face.

"What's this?" I ask him, trying to ignore the way my voice faltered.

"It's art, Chuck! She was sleepin' in my bed so I woke her up and asked her if I could get a picture before she got her ass the fuck out." Then he starts laughing.

I cringe. My best friend is completely wasted. I'm a little relieved it's just beer though. Tommy usually doesn't mess around with drugs, so that was one thing I don't have to worry about with him. He smokes a little herb now and again, but I don't think I saw him smoke tonight. What I did see him do was throw back two bottles of Jack Daniels in an hour and a half. That was earlier today. And, I mean... It's a little much for him, but not a limit. Still, he's plastered. "Wha'dya think?!" He shouts and I almost stumble back a little bit.

He's got this look on his face; wide eyed, grinning from ear to ear. In truth, I want to tell him it was the sickest shit I've ever seen, but that's definitely a lie. I've seen worse. I want to tell him to delete that fucking picture… but he just looks so proud of it and everything… so I shrug and pat his shoulder. "It's great, man. Awesome."

"Thanks, Chuck… That means a lot," Tommy's still looking all wild, but his words were pretty genuine. "Hey man. I'm fucked up." He smiles and I rub the back of my head, looking away. Tommy must of caught how offbeat I was by the sober look on my face because suddenly, a deep frown creased his lips.

"And you're not." He says blandly, almost like he's disappointed in me. "Damn, Chuck. Something up with you tonight?" Tommy always knows when something's up. To show him, I turn to the side and jiggle my drawstring bag from left to right. The familiar sound of countless baggies of drugs smacking into one another catches Tommy's attention right away. "I see. Business as usual."

I laugh to myself. "Yeah, man. As usual."

Tommy is quick to protest. "But dude, this is all you do nowadays! Even at school. Even when you're hanging out with me and Dil, man. Now that's wrong."

"I know…" I say to him, trying to tune out his words.

"No, Chuck, you don't know," Tommy snaps, quickly cutting me off. "Look. Here's how it is. This is the last party of the fucking summer and people are losing their fucking minds, having a good time."

He waves his arm slowly across the scene of everything that was going on at that point. It's like watching a really fucked movie or a king introducing a slowly crumbling empire. I really do want to be a part of this and it's like I just couldn't turn away.

Tommy's voice suddenly brings me back from my thoughts. He says, "As my best friend, I want you to do the same thing! So, go home, drop off your shit, then come back here and get fucking smashed with us, dude. Live a little." Next thing I know, Tommy's leading me toward the door. "Promise me you'll come back, man! Promise!"

The door is slammed shut right behind me before being opened back up by some drunk girl yelling to her friends about some show coming to town and how stoked she was to go. I'm in such a daze, I could barely hear her.

I walk off the porch and back to my own car like some sort of zombie. I could really use a joint right now. Something to calm me down.

Looking at all those kids, smoking and snorting and popping and boozing it up in that house… the musty air around me while I watched everything take place. A crowded living room of sweaty people dancing with glow sticks that someone must of brought in, someone slipping a capsule into a drink, a girl choking on some football jock's dick in plain sight…. It was a lot of sick shit going down in that place. Did I really want to be a part of that scene?

This is the last party of the fucking summer and people are losing their fucking minds…

Overanalyzing the situation starts to make my head pound. Shit. I need to relax. Maybe a little drive is exactly what I need.

I hop into my sleek black Chevy Camero, bought and paid for on my 16th birthday by Mr. Chaz Finster himself, and pull out of Tommy's driveway. Driving down the hill is pretty cool. The winding roads lead you down into the city's lights like an airport runway; like I'm coming back to reality from a whole different planet. I crank down the windows and the sunroof and take a deep breath of fresh air. It's enough to make my chest explode, but it's refreshing.

Grinning now, I toss the drawstring from the front seat straight into the back. It's starting to feel like the night could get better somehow. Maybe Tommy's right, if I just drop my shit off at home and go back to his house not looking to sell anything, I could finally have a good time.

When I get home, my sister's just heading out with Suzie. I turn and look at her as she fumbles for her keys. "Where're you going?" I ask, and she's just about stepped out and around me. I turn to look at Suzie, not even saying a word and she shrugs.

"To Tommy's," Kimi says hurriedly, flicking her head around to glare at me. "And keep it down, would you? Dad's asleep."

I shrug. She's not wrong. It doesn't take much to wake the old Chaz man up, so I apologize. "Sorry. Do you guys need a ride? I'm heading back there in a minute. I just need to…" I suddenly, I stop myself.

Kimi's probably the only one in our close knit circle who doesn't know I'm dealing, and she's my own sister. I would tell her and everything, but I just have this feeling that if she finds out about me selling drugs, she'll think I'm doing them, and then she'd tell dad. All that unnecessary drama.

I look up at Kimi and Suzie's faces. They're waiting for me to continue. "Drop a couple things off here…" I finish.

Suzie gives me a look because of the way I'd faltered in my words, but Kimi hasn't caught on. She's still looking like she's ready to bolt out the door. I can't help but laugh as I shake my head at her.

I hear Suzie say, "Actually, Chuck, how about we just give you a ride there? Guaranteed that neither of us are gonna be drinking, so we can be the designated drivers." At this, I smile. Suzie's always keeping an eye on someone.

"Alright, thanks Suze," I bend down and give her a kiss on the forehead, and then I say. "Give me five minutes."


	3. Susie Carmichael: i

Suzie Carmichael.  
August 28th 2009

"I'm really nervous, Suze…" Kimi says after Charlie disappears up the staircase. I look at her to see her wringing her fingers in her hands. "What if I see something I don't wanna see at this party," She looks up at me now, on the brink of tears and I sigh, sitting down on the steps beside her and putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"Trust me, Kimi. Going to one of Tommy's parties almost guarantees you're gonna see something you don't really want to," She looks discouraged now, but she knows exactly what I was talking about. At times like these, Tommy's house is a teenage wasteland.

As I said to Kimi on the phone, parties like these just aren't my scene. I feel like I'm way too good for the drugs and the alcohol… and I am. That doesn't mean I haven't tried them once or twice, because I have. They're just not for me. They never were. But does that mean I look down on Tommy or Chuckie for their drinking or Dil for smoking pot? No. I love them all the same.

Kimi brushes her hands against her face dramatically, looking up for more reassurance or words of comfort, but before she can say anything, Charlie is already at the bottom of the stairs. He's dressed in a white t-shirt reading Young & Ruthless in jagged letters, a snap-back cap turned backwards, and a pair of jeans that hung loosely from his waist.

"You guys ready?" He asks, handing me the keys to his black Camero. I'm up and ready, but it takes Kimi awhile. She reluctantly scoops herself from the marble staircase and shrugs.

"Yeah, sure. Let's go."


	4. Tommy Pickles: i

**AN**: This is probably my favorite chapter. It's kinda inspired by the song Super Rich Kids by Frank Ocean. I had so much fun writing it too. Enjoiii (:

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Tommy Pickles  
August 28th 2009

It's so good to be king.

I mean, so good to finally get what you want. Friends, money, girls - no limits. Literally, anything I want in life, I can get it with a wave of my finger. I could open my mouth to give a command and it would be done before I could even utter the last syllable.

But maybe I'm exaggerating. I'm drunk, I'm rich, and I'm Tommy Pickles.

The reason I feel like a fucking big shot right now is because I'm having this big ass party at my parents' crib tonight while they're out of town on vacation. I mean, they knew I was gonna have it, but they thought it was gonna be a couple people here. Shit, so did I. But, there are a few extras.

Who am I kidding? I'm in a room full of strangers right now. Not a familiar face in here, but everyone keeps yelling "Hi Tommy!" and giving me hugs and kisses like we've known each other forever. Some bitch in a denim skirt saunters up to me with these hoop earrings, swinging like pendulums, and she grinds her ass against me in a weird type of greeting.

"What's up, Tom-man?" She purrs. Quite horrifyingly, might I add, because her fingernails are scratching against my skin. She's trying to push my head into her neck or something. I try to snake away from her and grab my drink from the kitchen's island counter top, because honestly? Tom-man? How old is this girl?

I pull away finally, grabbing my special Styrofoam cup and taking a sip of the drink some kid mixed up for me earlier. It's fucking strong, but it's awesome. I'm looking at this cup like I've never seen it before. It's covered with a bunch of drawings Dil did in sharpie when he was bored. There's an eight ball, a marijuana leaf, a skull on fire, all these biker tattoo scribbles and my name written in this big graffiti-like script. It's the only thing in color. It's blue with a gold crown right over the Y.

It's fucking awesome too. My little brother is a fucking artist. It sucks though because my parents refuse to put him through art school. They think he smokes so much weed that he's lazy. At least he has a job. I've been sitting on my ass making movies and they promise to put me through any film school I want. It's really not fair if you ask me.

Speaking of Dil, I kind of want to see him right now. After prying myself away from this drunk cougar bitch, who actually looks to be in her early 40s, I slowly and stumblingly make my way upstairs into the theatre. No Dil, so I head to the balcony through the second floor foyer and there he is sitting on the ground, taking a hit from a bong with three other kids, one girl and two dudes. Or maybe one dude. Yeah, there's this chick who actually looks like a dude by the way she's dressed, so I assume she's a lesbian, but it really seems like she's feeling Dil the way she's watching him toke. Her eyes are half lidded and glassy, and she keeps moving toward him.

Or maybe she's high. Dil stands up after he clears the bong and smacks the palm of my open hand with his own. "What up, brotha?" He chimes happily and I shrug my shoulders, feeling a little looser than before.

"Nothin, man." I say, trying my hardest not to slur my words together. It's here when I realize how drunk I am. I realize the weight of the camera hanging around my neck and I hold it up, trying to flick it on. "Shit…" I mumble, fumbling with the switch. The words are warping on and off, back and forth. I'm fucking dizzy. Dil takes the camera away from me and turns it on before handing it back. "Thanks," I grin holding it up and taking a few shots of the kids sitting in a circle, smoking. Then one of Dil.

"Wow, dude. You're gone!" Dil says and he starts cracking up. His laugh is so infectious that all the kids on the ground start laughing too but it sounds forced, like they're trying to be in. I laugh at the fact that they've missed the joke. "Like, a Barry Bonds home run; going, going, gone!"

I nod and sit down on the ground with them.

"Shit, I know. I'm waiting for Mr. Charles Finster to get back so he can drink with me."

"He's actually coming here without work?" Dil asked skeptically. "Does Carter know? Is he even here?"

"Yeah, Carter's here. I told him." I explain. Dil looks surprised. There's usually no joking around when it came to Carter's business, but I knew how to talk to that guy. He happens to like me a lot. He likes Charles a lot too. He's one of his best runners. "He's fine with it. He said Chuck needs a little break anyway. You know that's all he does."

And Dil knows I'm right. The drug game is Charles' whole life, pretty much. He started dealing last year in the 9th grade after becoming close friends with Carter & helping him cheat his way onto the honor roll. See, I think the thing that makes Charles and Carter so close is their 'give-take' relationship. Charles is a smart guy and Carter is well known. Charles wanted popularity; and hanging out with Carter and me, he got it. Carter is a different story.

First of all, Carter is Suzie's younger brother. He's about 5'9, tall as shit, and intimidating. But he's very well liked since he keeps the drugs flowing and he's also a pretty cool dude if you're on his good side. You'd think to be so popular and basically sitting on a pile of cash, he'd be satisfied with everything... but truthfully, Chuck's told me how Carter has this dream of making it to med school.

The trouble is, Carter's grades aren't med school worthy in the slightest. So in the beginning, Chuck would help him pass classes by slipping him the answers to exams, even going so far to hack into the online school books to change his grades. Then, Carter started asking Chuck to help him study, you know. Sometimes to just get some one-on-one help outside of the classroom. Last semester, I think Carter had the highest grades in our class.

I hear someone yell Charles's name and I dap up my little bro and tell him to have fun. Dil simply smiles and lays back on the cement balcony, inviting me to come up later and watch some fucked up flick one of the guys have with them.

As I descend down the stairs, I see Chuck stroll in with a crew. Getting closer, I see that he's not exactly with a crew. Just with Suzie and Kimi who both are wearing unamused expressions. A drunk girl topples by my girlfriend, nearly spilling her drink all over Kimi's favorite halter. Suddenly roused, Kimi shoves the girl off into a piece of furniture, yelling a few choice words at her.

I wonder what's got her so upset as I get closer to the three of them, when the nameless girl jumps up and gets in Kimi's face. So I hurry up and wedge my way between the two of them and I tell the drunk bitch to chill before she gets kicked out. Thankfully, she leaves it at that and staggers away.

"This is exactly why I hate these stupid fucking parties," Kimi spits, her insult directed at me. I look up at her and shrug, way too fucked up to put up with her anger and I smile.

"I'm sorry, baby. Look. If you want, you and I can hang out by ourselves upstairs," I reply, touching her arm and moving close to her. "We can have some alone time."

Kimi isn't amused, so she slips away and rolls her eyes. "No thanks, hot shot." She scoffs.

I shrug again and turn to Suzie, slurring a hello and she hugs me. I've always liked Suzie. No matter how many times the boys and I fuck up, she has always been there. She's like the mother of our circle, no matter how much we piss her off and disappoint her. Despite the fact that she hates seeing me drunk, she looks happy to see me,which cheers me up a hell of a lot. "Drunk already, I see." She laughs.

"Suze, I've been drunk since noon yesterday. And it's about... 2 in the morning. I am fucked up," I laugh. Chuck laughs along with me and so does Suzie. Kimi is the only one upset so I try to ignore her. "So, what are you guys getting into tonight? Chuck...?" I look at him first, knowing that he's most likely the only one here to actually party.

My redheaded best friend shrugs his shoulders modestly and smiles. "I don't know, man. I'm sure to find something."

Kimi cuts in again, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Oh, we're staying? I thought we were gonna leave after I finished talking to Tommy."

"No one said that. Suze volunteered to be my designated driver tonight. I assumed that meant I was allowed to have a little fun." Chuck replies, obviously annoyed. "If you want to leave, you and Suze can take the Camero and go, but I actually did want to go home at some point."

Kimi looks over at Suzie for her defense, but it doesn't do much because Suzie just shrugs. Then Kimi looks at me. And I look at her; her dark, dark brown eyes and her pin straight black hair and her flawless skin. I look her up and down, and her choice of attire, and I smile. "You look great tonight, baby."

My girlfriend gives me a bland thank you and pulls me out of the room, full of smoke and lasers and loud music and drugs, and she winds me through hot, sticky beer breath and bare skin. Then we go down a winding staircase and into the basement. It isn't much of a basement though; it's my dad's office.

Coming down here, I think for a second about how my father used to make toys out of our basement, in our old house in the suburbs, and I think about living there. And I think about how as soon as he got rich, as soon as I got older, everyone changed. I think about how different my life is now, compared to then.

I can't think anymore because Kimi is standing in front of me with her hands on her hips. She's standing right in front of the glass wall that makes up most of the room and I see her silhouette against the crystal white moon. "Tommy... we need to talk," she says slowly and I nod, trying not to curse myself for not having my camera. My girlfriend, my killer babe of a girlfriend, could be posing for shots right now, in front of that glass and the moon. It would make a great picture.

My eyes droop shut and I hear myself tell Kimi that I love her and that I wish that we were fucking right now, and she responds in anger but I don't hear the words that she says.

"Are you even listening to me, asshole?"

That, I do hear. I look up and say, "Yes, Kimi Finster, I hear you." And I salute her like we're in the Marine Corps.

She shakes her head at me. "Why do you do this?" She says. "It's always something. You're always getting drunk off of your ass, you're always partying... having a good ol' time with all these people that don't even give a shit about you."

"Your brother gives a shit about me," I say in rebuttal. "Suzie gives a shit about me, Dil does. And a few of those people I don't even know give a shit about me. Those people fucking love me," I laugh and my eyes roll shut again. "So, what's the problem?"

Frustrated, Kimi does the arm-cross thing again. She stares at me for what seems like an hour or so and then she says, "You need to grow the fuck up, Tommy... because this?" She says, pointing at the ceiling where I can hear loud music pounding. "This?" She says, pointing outside to the crowded pool where I catch a few guys tossing this bitch in. "This?" She says, finally pointing at me. "This is disgusting. Do you honestly think this is what life is about?"

I laugh again and place an arm around my girlfriend, which she throws off like a big piece of wood hanging around her. "Kimi... I'm sixteen years old. You're sixteen years old." I say. "We're young. This?" I wave my arms around the way she did earlier, but perhaps in a more drunk way. "This is what we're supposed to be doing. This is what a teenager's life is about. No one around here is thinking about growing up. We're just having fun."

"You don't realize how dangerous this is, Tommy. It might be fun, but those people up there, aside from myself, Suzie, Chuck, and Dil... they do not give a shit about you or your well-being." She snaps.

When I try to respond, she cuts me off. "Here's a scenario. Say you go up there right now, run into some guys that you've hung out with maybe once or twice. They're cool and all and they have coke with them... and they're asking you to try some."

I try to jump in again and tell Kimi that I don't do coke, but she quickly starts up again.

"And you do, and you try a lot and you fucking overdose. And then what? Tell me how many people are gonna stop their fucking party to call an ambulance and try to save your life. How many of those bastards would ride with you to the hospital to make sure you get out alive? Tell me."

During the moment of brief silence that we have, I tell Kimi that I don't do coke. I tell her that I would never do coke. And while she's standing there, about to reply, I tell her that I can take care of myself. I tell her that if I did decide to do coke, I know my own limit. I don't indulge. I tell her how responsible I am for my own well-being and she just laughs it off.

"Alright, obviously you care enough about yourself. But how about for any of the people up there?" She says pointing at the ceiling again. "Or out there?" She says, pointing outside of the glass.

And I hear myself say, "Of course I care," but my voice trails off when I think about that babe I found chilling in my bed tonight. The pretty, fragile blonde that I ripped the covers off of. Her own blood leaking from her, into the thread of my sheets. I think about her dilated pupils and her glassy eyes, one so swollen and blackened that it was hardly even open. I think of the residue lining her nostrils and the large, hand shaped black and blue mark around her neck.

I think about the way she sat up and smiled at me after I woke her. I ask to take her picture. Her, wearing nothing but the remnants of ripped lacy panties, stained red. And she nods, looking up into the lens. Topless, bruised, bloody, smiling.

Click.

"Alright cool, now get the fuck out."

"Tommy, all I'm saying is... I care about you. I love you. I don't want to see any stupid shit happen to you or anybody else here. I understand that 'fun' is a lifestyle, but going overboard like this... someone's going to wind up getting hurt. I just don't want it to be you."

And as Kimi pulls me into her arms, I touch her. I run my hand down her side, against her ripped leggings, between her two thighs, and I press a firm hand against her. I rub my fingers against her clit and she stares into my eyes. Her dark, dark brown eyes. I can't see a thing within them.

"Tommy..." She says. No, more like moans. And right when she does that, I kiss her. It's gentle at first, but Kimi doesn't let it stay that way for long. All of a sudden, I find myself pressing Kimi against the glass. Her leggings are half way down her thighs and I'm kneeling down, about to lose myself between them. Suddenly, she stops me. She pulls me up to her, pulls up her leggings, her panties. Pulls me right up to her face and asks. "Are you cheating on me, Tommy?"

Damn.

Damn it, Kimi. Of all the moments to ask a question like that. I realize that I've said that last part out loud and my girlfriend brushes her hair to the side and turns, like she's timid after a moment like that. "I'm sorry, Tommy... but you know how I feel about that stuff."

I reach down, grab my hard dick and look up at her in disbelief. "Do you know how I feel about that stuff?" I say.

She ignores my little joke and walks away from me, but just far enough for me to hear her voice. "Are you cheating on me?"

Great.

Not only am I stuck with this boner, but now I have to lie. I have to lie because the truth would hurt Kimi and this relationship. And I have to lie because I don't want to lose this girl. I lie because, fuck. I have needs and they're being met. Just... not by Kimi. It's cheating, but it's only because Kimi can't satisfy me right now.

So I walk to her, I pull her back into me by her waist. I lay my head against her shoulder and I kiss her earlobe before I speak. I stroke her hair and I notice that her eyes are slowly falling shut. She leans against me and I trace my fingers along her waistline. "Kimi... You are my world and I would never, ever put what we have in jeopardy. I love you." I say, kissing her neck. I cup her chin and turn her head toward me and I kiss her again, gentle at first. But it doesn't stay that way for long.


	5. Maya McNulty: i

Maya McNaulty

August 28th 2009

"Why the fuck are we here?"

"Because... you know why."

The driver side car door slams and I climb out of the passenger side. When I start walking towards the huge house with the smoke and loud music, I realize that Lily is not at my side. I turn to see her getting herself together. She teases her hair a bit with her hands, rolls the hem of her skirt up once more and turns to me.

She points up, "How's the hair?"

"Looks fine."

Points to her torso, "Outfit?"

"Yup."

Points to her face, "Makeup?"

"Perfect."

Then to her chest, and she says, "And my tits?"

"Lil, are you kidding me?"

She laughs and shrugs her shoulders right before she pulls her shirt down a tiny bit more to reveal her cleavage. As we're walking in, I just keep thinking about how stupid this is and how many other things I could be doing right now. Instead, I'm going to a party, playing the 'BFF' of Lily Deville who has herself convinced that Tommy Pickles will fuck her tonight.

It's pathetic how much she goes out of her way to be some random hook up. I know for a fact that she and Tommy have gotten together countless times, and for the first time around Lil's 16th birthday. I could probably even describe how it happened. I mean, she tells me everything. We've only known each other for a few months, and she's already calling me, texting me, asking to hang out as if we've known each other forever. It's pretty weird but, hey. I feel sort of bad for her.

Whatever. Lil's cool and all, but I hardly consider her anything more than an acquaintance. I mean, it's a wonder we even became friends. You can tell by the way we walk in, how different we are. Lil's in a skimpy black scoop neck top with an open back, covered in sequins and a tight body con skirt that at least compliments her curves. She looks nice, but I'm just in a button down and some shorts, with a beanie over my head. This is no special occasion for me. I don't have anyone to impress.

I take the big camera from around my neck and hold my eye up to the viewfinder, pointing it a Lil. She poses, I snap a photo, and we both share a laugh as we work our way around all of the people.

All of these screaming, laughing, people. You can literally smell the drugs in their sweat. Their energy is almost infectious, and I find myself absorbed in looking around all the fucked up kids, making fucked up decisions. Having fun.

I can't help but take a few shots. All of the action and excitement is cool for a minute but I quickly get annoyed with the atmosphere and I'm like 'I need to put something in my system'.

So I fill a cup at the keg and some kid comes up to me, telling me that he can make me a bomb drink that will fuck me up better than any beer could. I smile, tell him that I appreciate his enthusiasm and turn him down. He nods understandingly and then he notices the camera around my neck. He says, "Oh, shit. You like photography too? Tommy's gonna wanna check you out. Probably compare some shots."

I smile again and nod. I don't really know anything about Tommy Pickles besides the fact that this is his house and that sometimes he fucks Lil, so I keep smiling and I say, "Yeah." But I do know that this boy I'm talking to has peaked my interest. He's got red hair and pretty green eyes. And he dresses well. His white t-shirt reads "Young & Reckless" in black, jagged letters and he's wearing a snapback with a pair of vans.

I offer a hand to introduce myself and instead of shaking it, he daps me up. "I'm Maya, nice to meet you." I say to him.

"That's an awesome name. I'm Chuck- I mean, Charles." He posts up against the counter now and I lean a hand against it. We start talking. "So, did you just get here? You're pretty sober."

"Yeah," I shrug my shoulders and throw a thumb back to my friend at the keg. When I look back, I see Lil standing around looking clueless for a few minutes before a random guy helps her pump. "I came here with my friend Lily. She's looking for someone. That Tommy guy you were talking about."

His suddenly looks surprised and he looks her way as well. "Lily Deville?" He asks and I nod again.

"So, you know her." I say.

He's pretty distracted by Lil, so he doesn't hear me. But he's like,"Tommy's gonna be in some shit tonight." as a smile works it's way onto his lips. And then he turns to me and he goes, "Here, come on. Let's go find him so I can tell him the bad news and you can show off some of those shots." Then Chuck (or Charles) elbows me and winks and the next thing I know he's taking my hand and dragging me through a crowd of people, out towards a pool. Tommy is apparently nowhere to be seen, so we head back.

Then he leads me down to an empty office downstairs, and there's no Tommy there, so we go back up. Then he leads me upstairs, tapping on the bedroom doors like, "T? Where are you, dude?" And when no one named T answers at the final door, he leads me up into another room. It seems like it was originally supposed to be empty, so I assume it's like a ballroom or something. But instead of being empty, it's styled with all this minimalist furniture and art and theres a big glass circle at the top of the ceiling.

The room is illuminated beautifully by the stars, and the moon, and their lights and I'm amazed. I think to myself, 'Damn, how much money do these people have?' and I check out the sky. Distracted, I'm startled when a barefoot guy sitting cross-legged on the balcony calls us over.

"Hey guys," he says when we reach him, then he turns to the redhead. "Chuck, my brother's been running around here looking for you, man."

And Charles, in his excitement says, "I've been running around here looking for him too. He headed off with my sister and I haven't seen him since. But dude... guess who showed up tonight?" The barefoot guy doesn't even need a second to think.

"Lil's here, isn't she," He says, barely containing his laughter. The two guys suddenly burst out together and I'm about to go back into the room to check out the ceiling again when Charles puts his arm around me.

"Yeah, she's here. And she brought a friend with her. This is Maya." I take a sip of my beer and go to shake the guy's hand, but he pulls me into a hug instead. At first, I'm surprised but then, I'm just amused by how chill this guy is.

He greets me with a, "Pleasure to meet you, m'lady. Name's Dil." And then he pulls something out from behind his ear (which I'm a little afraid to take from him), and puts it in my shirt's pocket. "A little somethin' for you there to remember us by. Some fine Cali green, brought to me by Mr. Chuck-man himself. Enjoy."

I dig whatever it is out of my pocket and hold it in front of my face. It's a perfectly rolled blunt, ready to be sparked and toked up. I can't even hide my smile when I look back at Dil. "I couldn't possibly take this, man." I say to him. At my refusal, Dil smiles and takes it from my hands before he puts it between my lips.

"Take it, enjoy it. Get lifted." He says, pulling a lighter from his pocket and sparking the blunt at the end.

When it catches flame, I inhale. I inhale again, and I hold the smoke within my lungs and then I blow out a thick, billowy cloud before I pass the blunt off to Charles, who takes two generous hits. As he exhales, I lift up my camera and take a shot of his smoke rings. Then he passes it off to Dil, who requests that Charles take a picture of the two of us. I smile and move next to him.

We stand together and Dil drapes one arm around me. With his other hand, he takes a decent hit from the blunt and then turns to me, lifting my face to his. He taps my jaw with his fingertips so I open my mouth and he moves toward me until our lips are almost touching. Right then, he shotguns me, blowing smoke into my mouth.

Click.

Both the blunt and my camera are passed back to me and I continue to smoke. At some point during that time, Charles asks where Tommy is and Dil points us back down the stairs. As we say goodbye, I give him one last hug and he and Chuck do some weird handshake.

Then we disappear down the stairs again. I'm pretty high and I realize that the house has emptied up a good amount, but there's still a number of people here. Charles and I have made it a big habit to stick together through the night as he's introducing me to all these people who's names I will probably forget later.

We find Tommy about an hour after our search had originally started outside of the downstairs office, smoking a cigarette by himself. He's nothing like I'd imagined he'd look. When Charles calls his name, he turns around and smiles.

He's tall; about the same height as Charles. And his hair is black, but it's so black that it looks blue in the right light. And he has dark blue eyes to match. He's pale, but what with how dark his features are, it compliments him. He walks our way and hugs Chuck, and you can tell that the two of them have known each other for years.

"Hey," He says, noticing me before Charles can even begin to introduce us. "That's an awesome camera you have there." He leans forward and lifts the camera in his hands. "Can I look at this?"

I say sure, and Tommy starts to go through my pictures. He finds the one of Dil and I and looking at it now, I realize how sultry the whole thing looks. Dil, with his arm wrapped around me, has his eyes closed and you can see a bit of a smile on his open mouth. The smoke coils around the visible part of his lip, around my face, my hair and the rest of the space between us is covered by the thick white cloud. The only things illuminated in the shot are Dil and I, and the background is pitch black.

"So, you know Dil, huh?" Tommy says coyly and I say no.

"I just met him tonight. I'm new in town." I say, "I came here with Lil."

Tommy's expression does a quick transition and he looks over at Charles who shrugs at him. "I was looking for you so I could tell you, man. But you went M.I.A for awhile after you left with Kimi."

At the mention of Chuck's sister, Tommy wipes his hands down his face. "Right... Kimi. She's the reason I'm actually glad Lil's here, but Kimi's still around here somewhere so I've gotta tell her to come find me later."

I say, "Text her." and Tommy nods, takes his phone out and sends her a text.

"This is crazy. I just want all of these mother fuckers to leave now, so we can hang out by ourselves." Tommy says to Chuck. He finishes going through the rest of my pictures and then he hands the camera to me. "You take some quality pictures. I'm impressed." He looks up at me and I can see it in his eyes, despite how drunk he is. "Seriously, you're good."

I nod and I take the camera back from him. "Thanks," I say. "My dad used to take pictures for a newspaper back in the 60s. He has his own magazine and shit now, so I used to hang out with him a lot as a kid." I hold up the camera and snap a shot of him and Charles standing together. "So that's why I'm into this stuff."

Tommy is still looking impressed when his phone dings in his pocket. He digs it out and makes a face. "Lil wants to know if I'm by myself." He says to Chuck, who shrugs his shoulders.

"I don't know man. We can leave if you wanna hook up. It doesn't make a difference."

And for some reason, Tommy looks at me. He looks me up and down, and then smiles before handing me his cellphone. "Put your number in there."

And for a minute, I can already see this turning out badly. I think I can already tell what kind of guy Tommy is. This Kimi chick that keeps getting brought up is obviously his girlfriend - but he either doesn't get enough sex from her or he doesn't get any sex from her. Which is why he's keeping Lil around, although it seems like she annoys him or something.

I'm not about to be the next component of a love triangle, but I honestly feel like Tommy's a cool guy. I'm pretty new to this town and I could definitely use some more people to chill with other than Lil, so I put in my number and hand the phone back to him.

"Maya, huh? That's a pretty name. It's fitting." He says with a smile. Dimples. "What are you doing hanging out with Lil anyway, if you don't mind me asking."

I say, "I mean, she's cool. She was the first person I started talking to when I moved here. Why, what's up with her?" I can't help but wonder what Tommy could possibly have against the girl who practically throws herself at him, so I ask him that.

He holds up his phone, reads the text from Lil again, and then places it in his pocket. A little bit after he does this, I hear my phone go off so I pull it out of my back pocket and see a random number has texted me. Then I read it.

'Hey, it's T (;'

I look up at Tommy, raising an eyebrow and he smiles coyly. "Just had to make sure you didn't give me some fake number." He says.

Before I can get another word in, he's moving us along to the Lil story. "Anyways, about Lil. Um, let's see. Well, we started fucking around in our freshman year, even though her brother has no idea. I mean, we all used to be friends. So imagine how awkward that was, sneaking around and shit. I had to make it stop a few months ago cuz I got with Kimi. But she just kept calling me and hitting me up, asking me when she was gonna see me again and stuff." He shrugs. "It's too hard to get away from her, so I keep her around. Besides, Kimi doesn't put out anyways." He looks at Charles. "Sorry, man."

Chuck shrugs. "Hey, what you guys do is none of my business."

Then suddenly, it strikes me. "Wait... you're dating Charles' sister?" I say, and Tommy laughs.

"Call him Chuck. Charles is for strangers and acquaintances." And Charles nods in confirmation. Then, Tommy gets back to me. "But yeah, Kimi is his sister. Step. She's married in."

I nod and scratch my head, mentally piecing this shit together. "And you said you've been friends with Lil since you guys were young. So... does that mean you know her brother, too?"

"Phil? Yeah, we used to be cool. He's a jock now. Captain of the Varsity football team his sophomore year. If you know him, that's probably how he introduced himself. Am I right?" Tommy asks, rolling his eyes.

He's right. So I nod, still not quite understanding how he can carry himself in such a way. I accidentally say, "Wow, man. That's a tough job, fucking your friends' sisters." And suddenly I look up, too high to actually be surprised.

Tommy bursts out in laughter and shrugs his shoulders. "It's fucked up. I know. But hey, we all do some fucked up things at this time in our lives. I'm not the one to judge." He lays a finger in the center of my chest. "And neither are you, babydoll." His finger slides up to my throat, then up to my chin and I laugh, snatching away.

"Sorry. I was just..." And then I shake my head. "I don't know. This is just too much for me. Like you said though, I'm not one to judge." And then I do the same thing that Tommy does to me, except when I have my finger against his chin, he leans into me.

His eyelids fall slightly, causing a strange air to shift between the two of us. His voice is reduced to a slight whisper. "I'm curious about you," he laughs quietly. "But it's alright. I plan on getting to know you this year. The real you. And I can't wait to know all of the dirty little secrets you have." He closes his eyes and he chuckles, moving back from me now and suddenly I realize that I feel different. "You'll find that you're no better than the rest of us."

I smile politely, despite my goosebumps. I smile, despite the fact that I feel like Tommy Pickles can see right through me. I smile and I tell him not to worry about secrets. I tell him that I'm a pretty straight forward person and that I've got nothing to hide. I tell him that although I'm no better than them, it seems as though I have a little more common sense. And a little more self-control.

And he grabs one of my hands with both of his. He rubs his fingers over my knuckles, over my fingernails. He flips my hand over and traces my palm, and then my fingers. "You'd like to think that, wouldn't you?" When he says this, his eyes suddenly meet mine. "It's alright. Trust me, I'm full of secrets too. A few, you've found out tonight." He smiles. "And you've just met me."

"Well, that's your issue." I tell him, not trying to come off rude. "You didn't have to tell me a thing."

And suddenly, I realize the problem with Tommy Pickles. "You're right." He says "But I like you. We'll just leave it at that. Now that you know my mistakes and my problems, I'm even more inclined to figure you out," and he laughs to himself, suddenly reducing the intense atmosphere back to a friendly one. "Maybe we can even make some mistakes together."

I chuckle, pull myself away from Tommy, and I raise the camera to his face.

And the flash goes off.

Click.


	6. Lil Deville: i

AN: This chapter is admittedly kind of a snooze-fest. It's good because Lil finally gets a say in, but I think I'm going to upload two just because of the fact. I like reviews & feedback! If you feel that the story can be improved, please let me know! (:

Enjoy!

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Lil DeVille  
August 28th 2009

"There you are!" I say, reaching the bottom of the spiral staircase. The three shadows outside are suddenly revealed with a flash of light, but even without it I could tell exactly who they were.

I recognize Chuckie, leaned up against the glass, smoking a cigarette. I recognize Maya on the ground, sitting cross-legged beside Tommy, who is laughing and rubbing his eyes.

And as I approach them from inside, I have a few questions. But the main one is, how did they all find their way to each other? And by that, I basically mean... how did Maya find herself between Charles Finster and Tommy Pickles? I can't say that out loud, but when I stand in front of them and they fall silent, I do ask, "Where have you been, Maya?"

She smiles as she looks up at me, shrugging her shoulders. "I dunno... I was over by the keg and then I started talking to Chuck, then... I dunno. We took off, I guess."

I look over at Chuckie, who shrugs and gives Maya a look. She instantly starts laughing and he chuckles along. They're friends now or something. But that still doesn't explain the Tommy thing. I notice right away how he's sitting way too close to her and I can already tell she's caught his interest. I don't feel threatened by Maya, it's just that I know how Tommy is. He's all about finding 'new' girls. I'm lucky he's even stuck with me for so long.

I wonder if he even wants to hook up anymore, so I look down at him and he says,"What's up, Lil?"

I try not to get mad, but I put my hands on my hips and say, "You never replied to my text."

Tommy nods, stands up to me, and wraps his arms around my waist. "I know. Sorry. Look, can we get some privacy, guys?" He looks back at Chuckie and Maya and they quickly wave goodbye to him before disappearing up the staircase. When we hear the last of their footsteps, Tommy lets go of me and travels to the other side of the room to flip a switch. The scenes outside past the glass suddenly disappear and fade black.

"Wow, I never knew that the glass could do that," I say to him and he shrugs.

He walks back over to me and I find myself in his arms again. Right against my earlobe, he says. "That's because this is the only room in the house that we haven't fucked yet." I feel his fingertips tracing shapes on my back, revealed by the cut of the fabric so I slide one of my shoulders out of the shirt and he smiles, bending down to kiss me there.

As Tommy begins to undress me, I look around the room and I realize that he's right... this really is the only room of the house we haven't fucked in yet. When I realize this, I also realize what a big home this is. I think about how many rooms we have fucked in. And I realize how long Tommy and I have been doing this.

It started back in freshman year. Specifically, a week or so after school let out. Tommy and Phil hadn't been speaking for awhile, so it caught me off guard that Tommy just randomly stopped over the way he did. As soon as I opened the door, he brushed past me and made his own way downstairs where Phil was lifting, as always.

I remained upstairs, trying not to be too nosy as I heard the boys shouting at each other. It didn't matter. I couldn't hear much. Just raised voices and pounding. Before I could even go downstairs to make sure everything was okay, Tommy was making his way up the stairs.

Whatever the argument was about, it ended up ruining their friendship. And as Tommy was stomping out of my house, I grabbed him by the hand and stopped him. I don't know what I was thinking. Over the years, I'd stopped talking to Tommy anyway since he started to hang out with Philip a lot more. But... I've always liked him. I didn't want him to leave without knowing.

So I kissed him.

And it went on from there, bringing us to this point. As we kiss now, Tommy's hands guide me towards a desk. I break the kiss and look at him. For awhile, our eyes meet and I suddenly remember the day, 3 months ago when Tommy tried to tell me how we couldn't see any more of each other because he'd found a girl that he wanted to settle down with.

'Settle down'... those are the exact words he used. The thought of Tommy Pickles settling down was hilarious. No, scratch that. It's still hilarious. Even now, being in a relationship, he can't keep it in his pants. Lucky him, getting stuck with a celibate girl...

It sounds like it, but I'm not jealous of Kimi... it's just that I knew him first. I've liked Tommy for as long as I can remember. I feel like... I don't know. I feel like I deserve him.

I actually think it all started when we were about 12... Tommy's father's company was just starting to take off when he came over, looking for Phil. Instead, he found me. We talked for hours about everything. His parents, his brother, his grandfather's passing. Everything. From that day, I feel as if I know more about him than anyone (besides Chuck and Dil) will ever know. I wonder if Kimi knows this much about him.

And right when I wonder this, my panties are slipping down below my knees. At this point, it doesn't matter how much Kimi knows. She doesn't matter - not to me, and not to Tommy.

All that matters is this. He was here before, and he's here with me now.


	7. Kimi Finster: ii

AN: So... awesome, awesome, awesome news. Which means, 3 great pieces of news! **1.)** I finally know how I want to complete this story. If the plot works out in my head the way I want it to, it'll be one of the first fanfics I ever _actually_ complete, so that's a big milestone for me. **2.)** This fic isn't ending anytime soon. I'm actually getting a little ahead of myself with writing and updating, so there are a lot of chapters you guys haven't read yet. c: annnnd **3.)** Winter break is coming up soon! (I'm in college, so I don't have a lot of time to update...) So, that means, a lot more writing and a lot more chapters! I don't know if anyone else is as excited as me about this but... enjoy anyway! It's a short one!

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Kimi Finster.  
August 28th 2009

I come up from the basement after my (unsuccessful) chat with Tommy and I'm relieved that the house has cleared up a bit. Or it might just be that a decent percentage of the standing bodies have found their way to the floor. A lot of people are slumped over sofas, each other, and some people are simply laid out on the carpet in a puddle of unexplainable mess that I almost hurdle over. There are still a lot of people here, but they're moving slower now. The hype of the party is lifted and replaced with a sudden, unsettling feeling.

It doesn't take me long to find Suzie. A half hour, at least but it would have been much harder if the living room was as filled up as earlier. We make eye contact from across the room and judging by the annoyed look on her face, we have the same idea. It's time to go.

"Seen too much already?" I ask her with a smile, and I elbow her side.

She shakes her head. "I don't even want to talk about it." Usually when Suzie says this, it's bad. It's not that Suze is usually a chatterbox when it comes to her own problems, but the main thing is... she hardly ever has problems. "Have you seen Chuck at all tonight?"

Wow. Must be serious if she's ready to go without saying any goodbyes. I shake my head and pull out my cellphone to call him. Almost as soon as I find his number in the phonebook, I see him walking up from the basement with some girl. They're talking as if they're best friends.

She laughs and takes a picture of the scene; all the kids passed out, unknowingly getting Suzie and I in the shot. This girl my brother is with is a Latina chick. She has her nose pierced and long black wavy hair. She's short, too and not just compared to my brother. This girl is tiny. All and all, she's pretty... but I sure don't know her. So, needless to say, when they approach, I have questions.

"Who are you?" I say immediately, regardless to if I've come off rude or not. I'm ready to leave, and to know that Charles is already caught up with some girl sort of puts me in a bad mood.

The girl looks up at me and smiles, straightening up and thrusting a hand out to shake. "Names Maya. You must be Kimi. Pleased to meet you." She says. I shake her hand, a little bit wary of the way that she's acting, but before I can get a word out; she and my brother burst out laughing. "Okay, I'm sorry about that. It's just that Chuck..."

As she gets ready to tell me some story, I look at Charles. "Suzie and I are ready to go," I say plainly.

"Okay then, lets go." He says, ignoring my slight attitude. He looks at the girl and he asks her, "You want a ride?"

And she shrugs. "Nah... I've gotta wait for Lil anyways." And then she crosses her arms and mumbles something. This peaks my interest.

"You know Lil?" I ask. I've never seen this girl around, but it's already strange enough that she knows my brother. The slight suspicion I've had that Tommy's been fucking around on me is beginning to grow. Just as I was leaving the basement, I heard his cellphone go off. He answered it & I heard him say Lil's name.

I mean, I didn't want to run back down there and grab the phone off of him, which I was beginning to think was a mistake... but this girl will definitely give me a chance to prove it without being the bad guy.

She looks somewhat alarmed, but she nods. "Yeah. I mean, we're cool. But she brought me to this lame party and left me, pretty much. I guess it was stupid of me to come along..." It sounds as if she's going to say something else, but she stops. I could go into bitch mode and get this girl to tell me what I need to know in an instant but I change my mind. Being hostile will only get me so far. Being this girl's friend might give me a little more insider info. I laugh to myself. I sound like a private eye.

"Ah, yeah... sounds like Lil," I say, and Maya nods along. She's about to wave goodbye to all of us, but I decide to do something nice. "Are you sure you don't want a ride?"

She looks at me again. Her suspicious glance begins to transform into a smile and she shrugs. "S-sure, I guess. Do you guys want gas money?"

I look back at Chuck for an answer and he shakes his head. "No way, are you kidding? How far away do you live?"

"Not even five minutes from here. I'll give you guys directions. Thanks so much." The thank you she directs at me, which confuses me but I nod and Suzie pulls out Chuck's keys.

"I guess we oughta get on our way here," She says, but recognizing her solemn tone, Chuck wraps an arm around her and pulls her aside.

"What's the matter, Suze?" He says quietly, as if he doesn't want anyone else to hear. "You seem upset." Instead of saying anything, Suzie hugs my brother for a long time. I think she's crying but when I approach the two of them, there's a tiny smile on her face. He's made her laugh, at least. I hear him say, "So, how about we do that? That way, you don't have to be alone."

"Okay,' she says, wiping away some tears. "Thanks, Chuck."

"No problem," He grins as they turn toward us. Charles still has his arm wrapped around Suzie when he says. "Suze and I wanna go to IHOP to get some pancakes and stuff. Anyone not game? We can always just drop you off." I think he's talking to Maya, but my brother is actually looking at me when he says this.

I sigh. I'm tired. It's been a long day. And I'm terrified that my boyfriend has been unfaithful to me.

"I'll go."


	8. Charlie Finster: ii

AN: Not too much to say about this one. It's a short one, so I'm a little tempted to upload two chapters in one day, but I think that's a little extreme. Anyways, enjoy!

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Charlie Finster.

August 28th 2009

The car ride to IHOP seems to take a lot longer than it should. It's alright though, because Suzie, Maya, and I are talking and we're having a pretty good time. Suze and Maya have a lot in common. They'll probably be good friends, I think. I'm glad they like each other. But Kimi is sitting in the front seat, gazing out the window, not saying a thing. I don't know if she's bothered by the fact that Maya's in the car, or if she's thinking about Tommy again.

As far as my sister's relationship with Tommy goes... it probably seems really fucked up that I haven't gotten involved and told her about Lil. It's not an issue of loyalty, though. I'd never choose Tommy over Kimi in any circumstance.

No, it all started back when they first got together. I could tell that she liked him and they were always hanging out, texting each other, and calling each other - things like that. So one day, I pulled Kimi aside to talk to her and I told her that being with Tommy was a pretty bad idea. I was like, 'He's my best friend. So I know better than anyone that he's not good with commitment'. I told her that he wasn't ready. He was too immature. And hey, she didn't want to believe me. She told me that I was being jealous and that I needed to stay out of her business... and would you look at that, now I am.

I turn my head from Kimi finally to ask Suzie if it's alright that I light up a cigarette in the car.

"Sure, Chuck. It's your car." She laughs, and I take one out of the pack. Then we start talking about the party. "So, how bad was everything before you left?" She asks. "I mean, when I was walking around, the place was wrecked. Do you think the maids are gonna walk out like they did last time?"

I burst out laughing, knowing exactly what Suze is talking about. Tommy's first party, the very beginning of freshman year when his popularity still wasn't all that serious. It was supposed to be just a small get together at his parents' new crib with just a few friends. So then it turned out, the people who got invited started inviting their friends, telling them about Tommy and how cool he is and shit. So all these people show up, and of course; whenever this happens, shit gets trashed. But there were just so many people. The house was literally wall to wall packed with people.

The worst part was, the house didn't clear out completely till about 3 in the afternoon, the next day. The help came in at noon. They cleaned up a good portion of it, but they had to work around all types of passed out teenagers and shit and eventually that got tiring. So the little mexican ladies found Tommy underneath a pile of his dad's books in the office, sleeping like a baby, and told him that they were taking the day off.

And you would think that Tommy Pickles would have played it like a big shot, got pissed off and cussed the help into doing their job the way his father would do. But instead he apologized and allowed them to take the day off like they said they were going to. Then he called Phil and I, and the four of us (including Dil) finished off the rest of the mess, hungover and everything.

"I don't know. I don't think they will. It isn't as bad as last time. The help doesn't even interfere with Tommy and Dil anymore," I shrug, taking a drag from the cigarette burning between my fingertips. "Maybe they figure they're a lost cause."

"A lost cause is a tough way to put it, isn't it?" Maya says and I look over to her, smiling because I was almost positive that she had fallen asleep but she's wide awake, curious as could be. "I mean, they're doing well enough. Certainly if they run into trouble, their parents will be able to get them out of it. Kids like that live it easy. They can be as destructive and rebellious as they want to without any repercussion."

"So, what does all that mean?" I ask her and she shrugs.

"Means that no matter what happens, they'll never be lost or find themselves in harm's way because mommy and daddy's money and social status will be able to get them out of there."

We all go quiet for awhile and I realize that she's probably right. Tommy and Dil will never be able to see the consequences of their actions, or how many people they've hurt by their decisions, or how they hurt themselves. It's like they've cheated their youth because that's what growing up is all about. After all the drugs and boozing are done... you wake up one day and find yourself in a dark place inside yourself. You're all tired and fatigued, and you look around and no one's there to save you. That's how we mature. We drag ourselves out of there.

They won't ever get that chance.

After a few minutes, the car comes to a halt and I look up and realize we're at IHOP. Suzie and Kimi have climbed out of the car and after awhile, Maya and I decide to do the same thing.

"Let's go get some pancakes," Suzie says with a smile. A fake one, mind you.

And I wrap and arm around her and smile back, a genuine one. "Yeah, Suze. Let's go."


	9. Maya McNulty: ii

AN: Well, here's a new chapter. A special thanks goes to DarthSidious04 for kickin' my butt into posting. (: The next chapter belongs to Angelica... I just hope her character seems correct... Anyways, enjoy!

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Maya McNaulty.

August 29th 2009

It's about 4 in the morning when I get home from the impromptu trip to IHOP I took with Charles, Suzie, and Kimi. It was a lot of fun. Kimi even seemed like she was keen on giving me a chance when she'd come off so bitchy at first. I guess I can understand her attitude, what with Tommy and all. Even if she doesn't quite know he's cheating yet, I have a feeling she has an idea.

Walking through the doorway, I feel some amount of guilt weighing down on me but I swallow it as soon as it arises. I don't want to get myself consumed by these people and their problems. That'll only cause more trouble on my own behalf.

As soon as I think this, someone knocks quietly at my front door. I let out a heavy sigh. I don't even have to open it to know who it is. I even think twice about answering but the knocks start to get louder and I don't want Lil waking my dog up (or my parents, for that matter), so I run up and answer it.

Lil is standing in the doorway with tears streaming down her cheeks and her arms wrapped around herself. I'm so used to this, I don't say a word and step aside, letting her into the house. She opens her mouth, but before a word can escape her, I'm pointing downstairs to my bedroom before she starts bawling. "Maya... I- I," she starts babbling, and I quickly shuffle to her side and guide her down.

When we reach the bottom, I cross my arms and don't say a word to her until she stops. "You need to be quiet," I say sternly, grabbing a t-shirt on my way to the bathroom. I shut the door and start to undress myself when I hear Lil in the other room talking. Her voice is shaking with tears. I wonder for a second who she's talking to, but I'm too distracted trying to get myself ready for some shut eye. I take off my beanie and my button down, then my tanktop and throw the 2 sizes too big tee over myself and pull it over my head. I'm about to change my shorts when my phone dings. I reach down for it, but stop when I recognize the number. It's Tommy. Who'd of thought he'd even still be up? I finish changing and dip out of the bathroom to see Lil on the phone, begging someone to come over.

Right at that instant, I look down at my phone. Tommy's text reads 'Lil keeps asking me to come to your house :/'

I look up at her and roll my eyes. "Who are you talking to?"

For some reason, she decides to act as if she isn't on the phone. Stuffing the phone in a pillow case, she looks up at me and says, "What?"

"Hang that up." I say, pointing at the pillow case. "Tommy isn't coming over tonight. He's drunk as fuck. Do you want him getting into an accident?"

She looks up at me, as if she wants to ask how I knew who she was talking to, but refrains and takes the phone out of the pillow case. "Bye Tommy, I have to go..." She mumbles. "I love you." And she presses the red 'END' button, dropping the phone off of my bed.

As I watch her hang up, I can't even believe what I just heard come out of her mouth. "Why would you tell him that?" I blurt, remembering what Tommy, Dil, and Charles were saying last night. The boys see Lil as a total joke and that little stunt right there wasn't going to make it past any of them. Lil wasn't the sharpest girl, but I wanted to avoid allowing her to be made a fool out of, being my friend and all.

"Because I meant it," Lil jabs back, defensively. "I do love him, Maya. I just wish that he would love me too..." I can hear the tears weighting down her words and before she can start with the waterworks, I sigh and crawl into bed beside her. "I've always loved him, for as long as I could remember."

I pull Lil into my arms and smooth down her hair with a hand. "I know, I know. Shhh..." I whisper. Inside, I'm sort of laughing to myself. I'm always comforting Lil from tears. And it's not because I'm a good friend, either. I just don't know what to do when she starts. I guess for awhile it was because I didn't know anything about the Tommy situation. But now it's because I'm tired of hearing it. Seeing things from both of sides, I know that Tommy is a hormonal teenage mess, like the rest of us but that he's still a good guy. Probably not good enough to be so smitten with, but I guess I can see how she's so attracted to him.

Then again, she's a mess on her own. Lil's never had luck with guys because she's always busy running back to Tommy. I truthfully don't know if he has any legitimate feelings for her but if he doesn't, I hope one day he finds the nerve to tell her that the feeling isn't quite mutual.

As Lil's tears start to soak into my shirt, I realize that school is starting next week. I realize that everything will most likely be thrown into full swing around then; all the drama, the fighting... everything. And I'm kind of upset about it because I told myself that I would focus more on my grades this year to make up for last year... and all of this could pose as a huge distraction.

Living in LA was much worse. At least I was out of my rough neighborhood. My parents weren't fighting about bills anymore since my dad found a good job here. But the way my parents talked about this town, it was damn near perfect. It was safer, the schools were immaculate, so on and so forth.

Hm. It sure doesn't seem so perfect anymore.


	10. Angelica Pickles: i

**AN**: This is one of my most favorite chapters so far. I really like writing for Angelica because I tried to illustrate her personality as a more grown-up version of herself from the Rugrats series and so on. So, she's still a bitch. Just a lot more strategic in contrast to being all-out mean. She's got a little wildside too, which I hope feels right to everyone.

Oh, and a special thanks to 10MidnightArrow11 for all of the great reviews! (: This one's for you!

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Angelica Pickles.  
August 29th 2009

"Where the fuck am I?"

When I say this out loud, I really am truly concerned about my whereabouts. But I mean, I'm not that worried. This happens to me a lot, you know. In fact, my summer mornings usually start this way. Or... afternoons, in this case. Who the fuck wakes up in the morning during summer anyway?

I find my way to a bathroom, but on my way there I take a look around. The walls of the room alternate from shades of dark blue and white, and there are these posters of sports cars and half-naked women. I'm obviously in a guy's room.

Well... that's a relief. At least I didn't wake up next to some girl.

I laugh to myself and finally get to the bathroom, running the water to wash my face. Before I can cup a handful, I take a look at myself. There are these nasty bags underneath my eyes like I haven't slept in weeks and my hair and makeup are completely fucked. When I see this, I can start to feel the comedown even more so than I did waking up.

That's what cocaine does to you. It picks you up, makes you fly: then drops you off like a cold hearted bitch.

I guess that's why I like her so much. We have a lot in common. I laugh to myself again and start to scrub my dirty face in my hands.

I've been fucking around with Snow White for about 3 or 4 months now. Starting high school, the most I did was steal cigarettes from my mother and smoke with my friends in the girl's room. After awhile, I smoked weed... but I didn't like the high. Sitting around and being lazy isn't really my thing. I tried acid, but I always wound up having bad trips. I found cocaine after I started dating my ex, Trevor. Even though we broke up, we still hang out. He's always getting me into some crazy stuff.

By the looks of it though, I'm not at Trevor's house. I wonder if I ended up going home with one of his boys and for some reason can't remember it, but right when I start to pick my own brain, a guy walks through the bedroom door.

I look at him through the bathroom mirror and I immediately notice that he's shirtless. Then I notice the top of his head, covered in crazy black hair. Then I see his face, and... wow, is he is gorgeous. If this is who I wound up sleeping with last night, then I can take my walk of shame with no shame at all.

"Morning, beautiful," he says and he smiles. And oh my god. He has perfect, white teeth and pouty lips. I start grinning like crazy. "How did you sleep?"

"Fine, and you?" I wink at him, hoping he mentions how awesome our night was.

He shrugs, grabbing a random shirt from off of a chair. "I can't say the same. The couch in the lounge isn't too comfortable. But I'm alright." He smiles again and this time I don't.

Confusion strikes me. "The couch? You mean you didn't sleep with me?" slips out of my mouth but I don't regret it in the slightest.

He smirks this time and cocks an eyebrow. "I mean... I completely would have. But you were blown out of your mind. I wasn't going to use the night to take advantage of you like that. So I let you sleep and put a couple benzos and a cup of water beside you to ease your comedown." His eyes sweep the room to the nightstand right beside his bed, and sure enough... there are a few pills and a glass of water sitting right there. "But it looks like you haven't touched them."

I sigh and rub my eyes, feeling a migraine slowly creeping behind my skull with an angry buzz. "Yeah, but I sure do need them." And I make my way back to the bed and sit down, taking a pill and the water to chase it down. "So... who are you, anyway?"

He sits beside me, running a hand through his wild, awesome hair. "Name's Manny. Well... Manuel, actually."

"Which one should I call you?" I ask.

Manny shrugs his shoulders. "Whatever you prefer. And what should I call you?"

"Angelica," I say, expecting him to cringe. I always wondered why my mom decided to give me such an... old name. Why couldn't I be Ashley? Or Amanda? Something normal, you know? Thinking this, I look up at Manny and realize he's still got that stupid grin on his face.

"Angelica is a very pretty name," he says.

I know he's just saying that but I laugh and push him a little. I'm feeling the benzo start to kick in, so I decide to call my ride before I get too carried away here or pass out. I look over at Manny and I say, "Well, buddy... it's been nice meeting you, but I gotta get going. Where are we?"

He shrugs. "Brentwood."

And I press my cellphone against my ear while it rings. It takes forever, but to my surprise, my little cousin Tommy answers on the first try.

"Hello?" He answers like he's 85 year old and retired. He sounds disgusting. I can imagine that he looks pretty worse.

"Good morning, shithead. Where are you?" I ask and I see Manny look at me from the corner of my eye. I ignore him.

Tommy sighs on the other end. "I'm at home, Angelica. Hungover. Why, do you need picked up?"

I smile. He knows me too well. "What was your first clue?"

He answers automatically. "That's the only time you ever call me."

"That's right," I reply. "I'm still in Brentwood," And I look at Manny for the address.

"14 Sunset Drive." He mutters. I repeat the address back to Tommy and he asks that I give him about 20 minutes. That he'll be around soon & we end the convo.

"Was that your boyfriend?" My latino hottie asks and I almost choke laughing.

"No! It was my cousin. He's coming by to pick me up." I sit back down on the bed and wink at him. "Why, were you jealous?"

Manny smiles again and leans into me. "A little..."

"Please," I scoff and for some reason, we kiss. I swear to you, it feels like fireworks are shooting through my chest. My heart is racing a mile a minute, but it feels as if everything around me is moving slowly. I figure it's the pills. Manny, for some reason, tastes like peppermint and he smells exactly like a boy should, only better. It turns me on, and I push him back against the mattress. He doesn't fight back one bit.

"Making up for last night, huh?" He laughs and I'm about to say something back but it I remember that I don't know a damn thing that happened last night, so I just kiss him again. Rougher this time, and he kisses back with the same intensity. I trail a hand down his chest and to his zipper and right as I'm easing it down he stops me.

"Wait."

"What?"

"I just... I can't yet. We can't. Not like this."

"What?!"

Manny's look never changes, not even a little. He's dead serious. "I don't know, Angelica... It's like..." He stops and sits up and I find myself in his lap, leaning against his chest. "I don't know you, but I'd like to get to know you more. We talked a lot last night while you were fucked up on blast," he stumbles a bit. "I - I mean, we both were, and I just know that, like... you're different, you know?"

Whatever he's saying just sounds like a whole mess of words to me. But it sounds nice. I try to be patient and wait for him to explain more. "No... what do you mean?"

"I can't describe it. I just know you're different and I don't just want to fuck you the way I fuck everyone else." He says.

I give him a look that tells him how stupid that sounded. It was such a dumb and random statement and yet... those words appeal to me in some way. I let it hang there in the air above us until I realize he's waiting for a response.

"Okay..." I say slowly, digging my phone back out of my pocket. "Put your number in there."

And he does.

And we spend the next couple of moments holding each other and looking into each other's eyes. It's weird, but it makes me feel different than I've ever felt with anybody else.

Right when I'm about to climb off of him, the bedroom door opens.

"Manny, if there's any laundry you need done, you need to-..."

We both look up and there's a girl standing in the doorway, holding a basket of in the scene before her, she raises her eyebrow and shifts her weight to the other leg. "Who's this?" She asks slowly.

Manny's expression changes and he's giving her the same stupid smile that he's been giving me. "Maya, this is Angelica... Angelica, this is my sister."

The two of us size each other up the way girls do, and then I ease myself away from Manny to shake her hand. "Nice to meet you," I say, since I have a feeling that the two of us are going to get real used to seeing each other.

I can tell she doesn't think much of this by the way she lets go of my hand. She looks back to her brother without taking a second to think about it. "...Laundry? I just got Lil out of here not too long ago, and I want to get some chores done before mom and dad get home."

"Lil?" I happen to say this out loud and Maya looks back at me, this time like I actually exist.

"You know her?"

I nod in response. "Yeah. We grew up together, I guess. She has a twin brother." Maya nods her head as well, getting ready to respond to this when the doorbell rings. Before I can get up, Maya is already out of the doorway. "Cute girl." I mumble and Manny shrugs his shoulders.

"Her head's in another place right now, I guess. She's usually more friendly." He says, wrapping an arm around my waist as we make our way to the living room. I see Maya inviting Tommy in, placing the basket down on the floor and they're sharing a laugh. He pulls her into a hug.

"I never would have thought you lived so close," Tommy says. "By the way, is Angelica around? ...That's the reason why I'm here. She's my cousin."

I wave a hand in the air, pulling Manny along and we join them. "Yoo-hoo!"

"Hey, Angelica," Tommy says, not looking at me; but at my new boytoy instead. "Is this your... boyfriend or something?"

I shake my head. "We just met. But since you two are already acquainted, would you want to go out and get something to eat? We can do lunch." I say. Tommy rolls his eyes over to Maya and she laughs and crosses her hands behind her back.

"That doesn't sound like too bad of an idea, actually." She says, smiling at me while Tommy is smiling down at her. I take it as a sign that he likes her or something, even though he's still with Kimi and all. Whatever. Maya seems nicer anyway. She turns to her brother. "Manny, you wanna take Angelica?"

A look of shock crosses him and he reaches forward to take his little sister in his arms in a tight hug. "What? You don't want to ride with your big brother?" His accent is thick, and I laugh at they way they tease each other. It sort of makes me wish I had an older brother or even some type of sibling. My mother had her tubes tied right after having me. Guess she couldn't handle childbirth too much.

Or raising a kid for that matter. I spent most of my time at Tommy's since my dad was stuck with some stupid desk job and my mom worked for a business corporation, which led up to her 4 year affair with her assistant Jonathan. I can't really say that affected me too much though. Being with Tommy and the other kids most of my life kind of provided a sibling role for me, so I guess I was just grateful for that, if nothing else.

"Does that mean you're riding with me then?" Tommy says to Maya in a quiet voice. She looks up at him and nods and he drapes his arm around her shoulders. She doesn't protest one bit. I watch my lame ass cousin try not to crack a smile. "Okay, so where are we going anyway?"

I place a finger to my lips. "Hmmm... I'm feeling like italian today. So maybe we can go to Romano's? Thankfully it's not far. It's right beside the Finster's coffee shop." I say, watching Tommy tense up when he realizes how close the restaurant is to his girlfriend's father's business.

But, like the Pickles he is, he pulls on his poker face and gives me the most charming smile he can muster. "Sure. Romano's it is."


	11. Tommy Pickles: ii

AN: Ahem! Hi guys. I kinda like writing author notes even though I guess they aren't needed with each chapter. Whoops... (: Anyway, I'm suffering a little from writer's block on this story currently because I've actually been working on other stuff (not submitted on the site - but mine nonetheless) so I'm thinking of submitting two just to hold everyone over & maybe get some feedback to help out. Thanks for all the views, reviews, faves, and the like! It really means a lot, guys. Enjoy!

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Tommy Pickles

August 29th, 2009

My car smells like sweet pea shampoo. It's like, as soon as Maya steps a foot in here, her essence just overturns everything. That's what she's like. She's like... the girl that can steal your attention in a room full of people without doing so much as throwing a glance your way. I think I might be talking a bit big on her though. She's great and all but I honestly can't tell if it's simply because I'm into her or if it really is this way.

But she just looks so gorgeous. Even better than the last time when she was only sporting a v-neck and a button down denim shirt. She's not wearing makeup again, but I don't think she's the type of girl who needs that type of stuff. Today she's wearing a dress, which strikes me a bit odd but then again I don't really know this girl. I ask about it to strike up conversation. "What's up with the dress?" I say gently, just so she doesn't think I'm trying to be a smart ass.

She sort of blushes and brushes her hair to one side, twisting the end between her fingers. "I dunno. I figure it's a new school year. Why not try something new, right?"

I hit my turn signal as we approach a red light and I look over at her. "I know what you mean. I was just wondering. The first time we met, you were dressed pretty casual in like, vans and a t-shirt. It looked more your style. I mean, you looked comfortable."

She laughs this time. I take silent note of the way her cheeks lift with her smile. The creases around her beauty mark on the right side of her mouth. "Yeah, that's true." She shrugs a bit. "I dunno, did I look better that way? Be honest." I'm not sure if this is supposed to come off flirtatiously or not, so I glance over her way. She isn't giving me any knowing glances or smiling all sexy like I'm used to girls doing. In fact, she just looks... really friendly.

"I think you did. Well, you looked super cute that night. And you look super cute today as well so I guess it just doesn't matter." I see the look on her face and I just know that was the right thing to say. She mutters a shy little, 'Thanks, Tommy,' and I say, "Don't thank me, I didn't make you this beautiful."

A bit of silence runs between us and from the corner of my eye, I watch her smile fade just slightly. "Don't you have a girlfriend?" Her voice deadpans. I'm quick to jump to my own defense at first, but then she says, "And... Lil...?"

And any argument I have made up previously dissolves away. I open my mouth, but it quickly snaps shut. Suddenly, I say, "Yes... but don't you have friends?" I can tell she doesn't quite know where I'm going with that, but she nods slowly anyways. And I just say, "Alright then. Is it alright if we're friends?"

She's like, "Of course it's alright."

"Exactly. I'm allowed to have friends." I say in my defense. "This is a harmless friendship, that's all."

She comes back with, "Is that what you and Lil were?"

I immediately start laughing. "Whoa, what are you... a private eye? Ease off the interrogation." She smiles at this. "I know you and Lil are friends, but that doesn't have to fuck up anything between us. Plus, I'm not even flirting." I know I'm lying through my teeth and Maya knows it as well. She raises her eyebrow just slightly at me and I can't fight the smirk that finds it's way to my lips. "Well... not intentionally anyway. I'm just trying to chill and be cool with you. Is that alright?"

She nods again and she's about to say something else before her phone rings. She digs it out of her small shoulder bag and I get a speck of a glance at the name on the ID. It's Lil. I sigh loudly before she can even think of receiving the call.

"What?" She laughs. "Did you want to talk to her instead?"

Before I can respond, we pull into the parking lot of Romano's. How convenient is that? For an added measure, I send a smile her way. "No, it's just that we're already here. I didn't want her to hold you up during lunch. Besides, I can't even order for you. I don't know what you like."

She shrugs her shoulders and drops the unanswered phone back into her bag. "Guess you're about to find out."

I don't know how to take that. But instead of thinking about it, I hop out and open her door. She steps out and she gives me this look. It's like she's trying to ward me off but it's like... one of those looks that the hot substitute teacher gives you when you're fooling around in class. You know what I'm talking about? I don't say anything, but I smirk in response. Just so she gets the picture.

"I guess so."


	12. Charlie Finster: iii

Charles Finster

August 29th, 2009

"You ever thought of going to college, Chuck?" Carter says after pulling the freshly rolled blunt from his lips. We're sitting on his rooftop, looking at my house across the street and the sun is finally dipping below the huge ass hills that Cali is known for. The sky is just about red, but there's a million shades of yellow, orange, and blue between them, blended so deep you can hardly distinguish them. I love sunsets like this.

Carter and I have been chilling all day long. Or should I say working? It doesn't even matter. We always seem to make this shit fun when we're together. Basically, we've been doing runs. Dropping shit off at different places around the Los Angeles area. Carter hardly ever does this small scale shit. The dealing is my job, along with a few other bums who're always just barely scraping by the numbers Carter wants. We'll call it the quota. Carter deals with the bigwigs. The importers. The higher ups. Tony Montana-like dudes. It's dangerous business, since it involves gangs and all that. But Carter's not only book smart these days, he's also street smart.

He has an older brother who was incarcerated with lots of gang bangers from outta Compton: Bloods, Crips, Latin Kings, all of that. He was particularly well liked too, which worked out for Carter, getting him connections to bigger operations. By bigger, I mean that these operations have more product. More exclusive shit. The finest tree produced from secluded greenhouses in the mountains, the purest Colombian cocaine... ever, the safest stamp bags on the streets... all of that.

He's way careful too. He doesn't deal out the good shit to everybody. Just people he trusts. Most of the time, we sell decent reg, alright coke... we don't fuck with heroin too much, rave shit like ecstasy, acid, and molly... but that's rare too. When we get regular customers that aren't hard-up druggies, we start putting them up to better shit. Nothing that'll have them running home to mom, but good enough to keep them coming back. If a bunch of people know how good our product is, they'll go around squealing. Other operations will hear about it, the cops will hear, and it just won't turn out good for us.

So yeah, we're not making as much as we could be. But it's basically a safety precaution. The bigwigs are the ones that wind up getting killed and locked up. The ones icing themselves out, covering their families in designer shit. We just get enough cash to provide for ourselves. Of, you know. Regular shit. Drugs, video games, clothes, food. So, when Carter asks me about college, I start wondering, like.. what's the use? We're already making enough cash. So why would I ever waste four years of my life slaving over a degree, you know?

I take a sip of my 40 and ponder his question one last time. "I've thought about it a few times, of course. It just kind of seems like a waste of time though."

Carter takes another hit from the blunt and gives me a funny look before passing it my way. "Man, what? College is a way out. You gotta think bigger and better than just getting a simple job and living the rest of ya life where you're at. You're capable of better, Chuck." He says. I want to let the conversation die there, but now he's off again on a rant. "I only fuck with the drug game for my education. I wanna better myself."

And I nod my head. It's true. The only reason Carter deals is to save for college. He doesn't need any extra money. In fact, Carter needs the money as much as I do. His father has a pretty successful TV show, so they rake in a lot of dough from that, but his dad hasn't been saving for anybody's schooling. He apparently finds it unfair, since he didn't save money for the older kids and Carter is currently one of a total 5. He's the second youngest. Suzie is just a little bit older than him.

"I hear you man. I just wanna think it over more. I don't even know what I'd want to study. Something I'd be good at. But the only thing I'm good at right now is... dealing, I guess."

Carter shakes his head furiously. "Nah, man. Nah. Don't think like that. You gotta delve into your interests more." He pats my back and I hit the blunt a few more times before I pass it back to him. "Like... when you're at school, try to figure out what you enjoy. Not just the stuff you're good at. There's a huge difference." I'm guessing that he notices the look on my face because a coy type smile peel his features back. "Alright, I'm done. Just a bit of advice."

"I hear you, man." I say, watching him face the rest of the blunt.

I'm feeling pretty high when I look down at the pavement and see no one other than Maya walking across the street to Lily and Phil's house. I smile and shout her name from the rooftop and flag her over. "Maya! Hey!"

As soon as she sees me, she laughs out loud, stands on her toes and shouts "Well, hey!" and she switches direction over toward us. Once she finds herself in the yard, she puts her hands on her hips and looks up at me. "What are you doing way up there?"

I smile down at her. "Way up there is right." and I make my hand out like a plane and aim it at the setting sun. "I'm just chilling with Carter for today. We got some shit done so we're just hanging out," and I point a thumb at my boy who I notice has all of a sudden fallen shy. I can't help but laugh when I watch him wave. "What's the matter, man?"

But he acts like he hasn't heard me and he smiles at her. "What's up? How are you?"

"I'm alright, man. How about you?"

And just like that, the two of them are engaged in conversation; introductions and all that. And that's when I see Lily walking off her front porch with two forties in each hand. She's wearing a pair of tie-dye denim shorts and a tank top that's been cut up into fringes and beaded at the bottom. Her hair is done differently, but I can't exactly figure out what it is.

"Hey guys!" She yells and soon enough, she parades her way over to the front yard as well. Carter's attention shifts to Lil in an instant.

"What's everyone up to tonight? Are you guys gonna be busy?" She asks him and Carter says no. He asks her what's on her mind and she smiles, wrapping an arm around Maya and offering her one of the 40s to which she shakes her head in a modest refusal.

"I was thinkin' we could all hang out at the beach tonight. Someone's trying to hook up a fireworks show down there. As like, an end of the summer thing." And she shrugs.

Carter sucks his teeth and smiles. "Damn, didn't y'all get enough partying at Tommy's? Besides, tomorrow's the first day of classes. You really want to be burnt out when we're going to class?"

And Lil smiles up at Carter and I watch her lick her lips at him. I'm a little bit taken aback by what's going on, but I don't say a word. In fact, I look over at Maya to see if she's catching onto any of this, but she's on her cellphone, texting someone I guess. "Aw, come onnn," Lil drawls. "We won't be out long, I promise. The fireworks end at 10 anyway. And we can invite more people. Maybe Tommy can tag along or something."

This is when Maya looks up. It's quick too, because her curls flick straight into her face and back when she looks at Lil. And Lil... she doesn't even take a second from making eyes at Carter to look back. So then, Maya looks at me and I just shake my head. Hey. If Lil isn't worried, then there's no use sweating her. We both affirm this and shrug almost simultaneously.

"I kinda wanted to go down and take some pictures." Maya says.

Carter's eyebrows raise. "She does that photography shit? That's awesome. Sorta like Tommy, huh?"

"Yeah, man." I chuckle, gathering myself up from the roof. "Except Tommy does film, remember?"

And Carter gets this lazy ass look on his face. He shrugs his shoulders and laughs. "Man... sure. I guess, shit. I'm high."


	13. Tommy Pickles: iii

**AN**: So... I'm sorting things out with this story. Things are about to be dramatic and a little crazy but I'm pretty excited about it! So anyway, enjoy the chapter! (:

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Tommy Pickles

August 29th, 2009

"Hey, baby... what are you doing tonight?"

When I say this, Kimi smiles and kisses me on the cheek. "Hanging out with my wonderful boyfriend, right?"

And I kiss her right back and I say, "Right, but I wanted to know if you wanted to go out tonight. Like, out somewhere. You know?"

And then Kimi does this thing she does whenever I mention something she doesn't like. She pretty much deflates in my arms and gets this irritated look on her face. I'm used to it, though. And I'm used to getting my way with her. But seeing her make that face and get so set off kind of gets to me already. We can never do anything without her getting upset at me anymore.

"Tommy, we never spend any time alone," she whines and I pet her head.

"I know, baby. It's just-."

"I never get to see you anymore..." She says.

"Yeah, but we can-."

"Is there something wrong with me?" She asks. "Is it like... uncomfortable for you to be around me or something?"

"Kimi!" Everything around us gets kind of quiet. All the background noise, everything. I think the cleaning ladies outside the hall even stop their casual chit-chat and cleaning to listen in. Joke's on them though because I'm not putting up a fight for anybody's entertainment. So instead of causing any fuss, I kiss my girlfriend and I say, "Baby, goodness. Just hear me out, okay?" And I smile.

She smiles back. "Okay, babe."

"There's a little 'back to school' thing going on at the beach tonight, and later on there's supposed to be a firework show and... I was thinkin' it'd be really awesome if we went. We can hang out and watch some fireworks together."

Kimi smiles almost effortlessly, and that's when I know I've got her reeled in. As you can tell, she's usually the type for that 'one-on-one' stuff. She loves coming over, laying around, talking... watching movies and stuff. But, you know. I'm not that type of guy. I like to go out, see people, do new things. But I figure, as long as Kimi's with me tonight... it won't matter.

I look down at my phone, realizing I haven't responded to that text message from Chuck asking me if I was swinging by the beach tonight. I hit him back and tell him yes and that I'd see him there around 8:30.

Instead, Kimi and I get to the beach around 9-ish, but it's okay because things are going awesomely between us. We're holding hands and walking barefoot in the sand, weaving between kids who are shouting 'hey' to us and telling us how cute we look together. I pull Kimi into my chest and kiss her on the forehead in front of a few people that we're passing and I hear a few bits of conversation between these two girls. "Isn't that Tommy Pickles? He has a girlfriend? Ugh, that's a shame. He's so fucking hot."

And I wonder if Kimi's heard this, but right when the thought crosses my mind, she throws herself onto me and I catch her underneath her legs, which are vertically straddling either side of me. Her arms are wrapped around my neck and we're making out, right in front of these bitches who are sucking their teeth and rolling their eyes.

And what really gets me is when Kimi gets down, she smacks my ass and winks at me and says. "They're right, baby. You're so fucking hot."

And these bitches, they're still fuming.

And I'm turned on in the worst way possible.

And that's when I hear a familiar voice shout "Hey!" at us from about two beach towels over. Maya, Chuck, Carter, and Lil are sitting out on a towel and flagging us over. At least, Chuck and Maya are. For some reason, Carter and Lil are acting like they're all into each other and wrapped up in conversation. I fight the urge to roll my eyes and just smile at my friends who are making their way over to me.

"Hey Kimi, Tommy," Maya says as she saunters over and salutes the two of us. Kimi laughs and opens her arms up to hug her like they're best friends, and once again I find myself confused. Regardless, I hug her too. "How's it going?" I ask her, taking off the snapback she's got perched backwards on her head to ruffle her hair.

To which, she shrugs. "Ah. It's goin'." And she waves that camera I'd originally met her with at me. "I got dragged down here tonight. But hey, it's a good opportunity to take some pictures, you know?"

I laugh and nod when what I really want to do is give this girl a kiss right on the forehead and talk more about pictures and stuff. She's so awesome. It's just not fair. Kimi, who was previously engaged in a hushed conversation with her brother, jumps in to speak to Maya too. Something about taking pictures of her and I when the fireworks start. But I'm still looking at Maya, wondering why she hadn't moved into town sooner.

"Sure, that'd be awesome. I'll totally do that for you guys." She says, walking us back over to the little spot they've grabbed in the sand. And then she starts talking about lighting exposures and stuff and even though I know Kimi can't keep up with her, she nods and talks along anyway.

"Tommy does a little bit of photography too, when he's not doing film. He's crazy good. Right, baby?" She says, bumping me to the side with her hip.

I smile and take her under my arm. "Right, right. But I'm nowhere as good as Maya. Have you seen her work?" And the ball shifts to Maya's court. She doesn't even acknowledge how I've suddenly put her in the hot seat. And that's okay, because she handles it just as coolly as she handles everything else.

"I'm alright..." She chuckles. "Hopefully I'll keep improving. I'd love to see some of your film projects though. How long have you been into that?"

"Oh, gosh. Since forever." Kimi says, rolling her eyes with a modest smile. "Remember the one you made about your grandfather?"

I smile. How could I forget? One of my first successful short-films ever. "Grumpy Old Men. It was a film about my grandfather and my dog, Spike and how they grew old together. I used a lot of home movies that my parents took when Dil and I were kids. It kinda gives it a nostalgic feel... you know?"

Maya nods, and I can tell she's kinda getting into this convo. I want to talk more, but Kimi cuts it short. "Where is Dil anyway?"

I shrug. "No idea. He's probably around here somewhere." And I finally plop down into the sand. I notice there are three 40 ounces parked pretty close to me, so I grab one and Lil scoffs offhandedly.

She says, "That was for Maya." all haughtily and pissed off like, then she rolls her eyes.

I ignore her all together and wave the bottle at Maya. "Did you want this?"

"Nah," she shrugs, then she responds to Lil. "Chuck and I were deucing one. 'Member?"

This time, Lil ignores her and goes back to talking to Carter. Realizing how everything is starting to go, I start to feel a little uncomfortable. Was this supposed to be set up like... a triple date scenario? And who paired Maya up with Chuck? Who paired Lil up with... anyone? This is so weird, but Kimi sits down beside me and I kiss her. "Do you want to share this?" I ask, regarding the 40 ounce.

"No, Tommy..." She sighs. "And I wish you wouldn't drink tonight."

I try to ignore her and pick up the bottle. She stops me. "Didn't you hear what I said?"

And I want to tell her, 'Yes, baby. I heard you. But I don't really give a fuck.' But I don't say that. Or anything like that, in fact. I just shrug and put the beer down and say nothing else.

Lil and Carter are beside me practically down each other's throats, fighting to the death for tongue dominance, so I turn my back to that only to see that Chuck and Maya are still up, strolling along the shore and talking... for a minute I feel myself getting a little jealous. I try to fight it off, though.

After all, I'm Tommy Pickles. Jealousy doesn't look good on me.


	14. Maya McNulty: iii

**AN**: Another chapter because I can. Enjoy! I hope nobody judges Lil too much, sheesh. _

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Maya McNulty

August 29th, 2009

"So... this is what you guys do the night before school starts? I'm usually picking out my outfit and going over my schedule for the 25th time by now."

Charles laughs and playfully jabs me in the shoulder. "Oh, really? Sounds like you're pretty school savvy." I shrug at this and he continues. "But nah, we don't usually do this. Actually, this is the first year they've had this little firework show on the shore. It was a pretty awesome idea though."

Right when he says this, a blast of color explodes in the air and I jump back with my camera like it's nobody's business. Chuck laughs again while I'm snapping pictures until I'm satisfied and think I've had enough. "Hey! You guys wanna pose for a few shots?" I say, flagging everyone in to take pictures.

Once everybody's standing in front of me, I'm like; "Who wants to go first?" And Kimi damn near jumps at the opportunity.

"Tommy and I will model for you!" She laughs and I grin along with her. The two of them stand in front of the blasts and I take like 5 or 6 shots of them doing cute things like holding hands, kissing and stuff. It's pretty traditional.

And then I'm like, "How about one with all of you guys in it?" Everyone goes dull. So I'm like, "Aw, come on, guys. Be civil."

"Who's not being civil?" Lil snaps in Tommy's direction. "I'm perfectly fine with it. Come on, guys." And she smiles and stands in front of my lens' firing rage. Chuck starts making his way toward the imaginary frame along with Carter but Kimi and Tommy stay put.

Before Lil can open up her big mouth and say something about it, I cut her off. "Man, never mind. You guys do better candids anyway." And the group slowly begins to break up. But then Tommy puts an arm around me.

"Lemme see that camera," he says and I slowly hand it over. A few minutes pass and we're all sort of just looking at the show above us. All of a sudden, I realize I hear the lens of my camera clicking. I look back at Tommy and he's lowering my camera with a coy smile.

"Well, look at that," he says. "You were right. They do take some pretty good candids." He inches towards me and scrolls through the shots and there's a picture of me, looking off into the distance with a gigantic flash of blue and green behind my head. "I like yours the best though." And he winks at me when Kimi isn't looking.

This is a high risk playing field here. Normally, I don't mind a little harmless flirting on Tommy's end but when his girlfriend is around, it's a completely different story. I've just built somewhat of a friendship with Kimi from nothing, it seems and It's functioning pretty well. I don't wanna get on the wrong side with this girl.. because from the looks of it, it doesn't result to much good. I mean, Lil can't help but squirm every time she says something or cuts eyes at her.

I wonder in what realm of "girlhood" these two are in when they decide to stand side by side and be catty towards each other instead of just confronting the issue, but instead I decide not to dwell on it. If I put myself in the middle, I'll probably just end up getting myself into some trouble. So I nod at Tommy and make my way towards Charles as the explosions in the sky increase two-fold.

He's smoking a cigarette, just observing from the background like he does normally when the finale starts. The sky is pouring color all around us and the next thing I know, I'm huddled underneath his arm looking off into the distance.

As the fireworks end, I hear Tommy say: "Hey... here's your camera," and he's got this weird look on his face like he wants to tell me something. But he just turns the viewfinder in my direction and scrolls through some shots of Chuck and I standing together. "I kinda just kept shooting through the finale. Hope you don't mind or anything." And a weird grin cuts across his face. Charlie doesn't notice a thing, but when I look up at Tommy, his eyes are darkened and he's looking a little more dejected than I'm used to seeing him look. Is this what I think it is?

Instead of trying to figure it out, I'm like, "Thanks... man." And he nods his head. I find myself taking a quick look around and I notice that Lil and Carter have disappeared and that Kimi is engaged in conversation with someone else. By the looks of it... it looks just like Philip. I want to go say hi but Tommy chuckles a little bitterly and crosses his arms.

"There's the Captain of the Football Team right over there," he says to Chuck and I... so I guess I was right. "Don't you guys wanna go ask for an autograph?" Charlie laughs too, but it's gentle and it isn't as if he's trying to mock anybody the way Tommy is. I feel like, even though Tommy portrays himself as this really cool kid most days, he's really insecure and it's weird. He doesn't like being upstaged or outdone by anybody and it shows. I try to ignore it though.

"Hey, man. Relax," I chide. "What's your big issue with Phil? I mean, you're the one who fucked his twin sister." I don't even mind how blunt I am when I say this, but Charles looks down at me like I should have held my tongue. For an extra measure, I look up at him and shrug my shoulders.

But once the look of shock is wiped off of Tommy's face, as quick as it appeared, he starts laughing and he kisses my cheek. "You don't hold back at all, do you? I like that." I'm way too dumbfounded to say anything, and Tommy squeezes my hip for added measure. It makes me squirm. "You're never afraid to come at me head on. That takes guts, sweetheart."

And I don't know what it is, but now I feel like Tommy is challenging me. It's sort of getting beneath my skin, but I'm not going to just shy up and let him win. We lock eyes and once again, something passes between us.. but now don't feel so intimidated. He's the one who breaks gaze when Kimi calls him from a distance. This immediately snaps me back to reality. She and Phil are standing side by side as they approach.

And I think it catches all of us by surprise when she says, "I'm gonna catch a ride home with Phil. You don't mind, do you? He lives closer."

Tommy's jaw damn near falls open, but he fights it and smirks. His arms fold across his chest and he starts putting off a vibe of indifference. "Sure, Kimi. Go ahead. Call me when you get home though. Promise?"

She looks a little surprised too. "You're not mad, are you?" She asks innocently, and Tommy makes himself busy by asking Chuck if he can steal a smoke.

"Huh? Oh. Nah, I'm not mad. Just... be safe and stuff." And his eyes quickly shift towards Phil. Of course, I can already sense some shady shit going on, so I quickly jump in before Tommy can start a fight.

"How's it going, Phil?" I chirp, stepping in front of Tommy as if I can obstruct Phil's view of him. I'm pretty short, but I still bump 6 foot Phil with my shoulder as if I'm the same height and 40 pounds heavier than him.

My neighbor smiles at me and basically buries me in his strong chest in a hug. Luckily, before I suffocate myself to death in his Gucci cologne, he lets go. "It's going awesomely. Are you excited for school tomorrow? Your first year as a Werewolf, huh?" And he howls into the night. To my surprise, a few guys behind him howl as well.

I look back at Tommy and quirk a brow, to quietly mention how I saved his ass seconds ago. He would have been vastly outnumbered if say a brawl would have broken out between the two of them, but he just about ignored me and engaged Chuck in conversation. "I'm actually pretty nervous," I laugh and brush a hand behind my head, nearly knocking the hat on my head clean into the sand. I catch it just in time though and Phil laughs at me.

"Don't be," He says with a genuine smile on his face. "If you need anything, the guys and I will be around." He points a thumb back at the football players and all their brute strength. I guess I must have shied away because Philip looks determined to reassure me. "Hey, what's that look for? We don't bite."

He seems pretty into the whole "collective" idea of his football team. They're like one large family with some sort of crazy growth gene. Brothers with big, broad shoulders and an identical walk that boasts confidence and power. I don't know if I trust any of the other guys, but I feel comfortable enough to approach Phil just in case I need help tomorrow. I shrug my shoulders. "Well, that's obvious. I'm standing right here and I've managed not to get a chunk ripped out of me." And we laugh and I switch subjects. "Hey, where's Lil?"

"Lil..." He says slowly and rolls his eyes. "She went off with Suzie's little brother, Carter. You know him..." And he trails off in distaste. "I hope she's not getting herself into any shit. I'm not helping her out this time."

And I sigh, because by default, that puts me in charge of Lil for the night. Before I can even reprimand Phil about this, he's pulling me into another hug. He says, "Well, alright. I've got to get Kimi home. They have a curfew... so, I suggest you tell Chuckie to get home too."

It's weird that he calls him Chuckie... since the lot of them have pretty much given up that nickname years ago from what I've been hearing, but I don't call him out on it. I say my last goodbyes to them and wave as he and Kimi weave themselves through all the bodies retreating from the shoreline.

"What was that about?" Chuck says to me and I shrug. So he looks over to Tommy and sort of repeats himself, in a rephrased fashion.

"It was about Phil trying to take my fucking girlfriend back, that's what it is." He damn-near snarls and I feel discomfort threatening it's way up my spine. I stifle it though and try to catch more of this story before I go off to find Lil. "He dates her for like two months after we split for a little while and just thinks now that whenever we go through some shit, he can just convince her to get back with him. He's a piece of shit."

I fight the urge to let out a heavy sigh. These people probably couldn't survive a day without some sort of drama affecting their personal life. Instead of making any input, I turn half-way out of the conversation and I tell them I'm going to go find Lil.

"We'll come with you," Tommy says. "I have to get my mind off of all this bullshit."

So we walk down the shoreline, which is no longer cluttered with all of the people and their towels and coolers and boomboxes and stuff, and we make small talk trying to avoid the subject of Lil's doings or Phil's grand scheme to swindle Kimi away from Tommy. Instead we talk about school tomorrow. We talk about our classes and where we'll be sitting in lunch. We talk about this until we find ourselves at the pier. And in front of us, we see Lil, on her knees in front of Carter, who is standing and holding her hair back into a makeshift ponytail.

Tommy is the first to interrupt by clearing his throat, to which Carter jumps back and buttons up his pants, faster than I've ever seen anyone ever move.

He whips toward us and says some jibberish about officers and being arrested until he notices that he's not in the least bit of danger. He starts cracking up. "Good lord, guys... Couldn't you have been a bit more... I dunno, timely? Or something?"

Tommy and Chuck are laughing equally as hard, but Lil and I are just too shocked to do anything but stare at each other. She gathers herself from the ground, wipes the sand off of her clothes, her knees, and strides toward me. She's still red in the face, but manages to look completely nonchalant about the whole thing. "Well, this is awkward." She laughs quietly.

"Pretty much. Never would have figured you'd be the type for an outdoor sexcapade." I say, looking out into the dark ocean in front of us. When I look back, I notice Lil look directly at Tommy and I can see this burning look of victoriousness in her eyes. She actually thinks she's made him jealous. I'm dumbfounded as soon as I notice. I don't know why she put herself in such a low situation _just_ to get back at Tommy Pickles. As if he even cares an ounce about who she blows underneath a pier.

"Well, you know what they say... spontaneity is the spice of life." She chides coolly while she fixes her hair.

I raise an eyebrow. "Is that what they say?"

And she shrugs. "If they don't, then they should start."

We actually share a laugh.


	15. Charlie Finster: iv

**AN**: I'm not too sure if this is a short chapter or not... it feels pretty uneventful so I'm half-tempted to just post two but I like to have a 2/3 chapter buffer before I post something new. I moved the story along a few months because I want you guys to see how much has changed and... hasn't changed. Trust me, it gets a lot more wild after this. Also, you guys asked for Phil's perspective, and that's coming up next so... Read, Review, and Enjoy!

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Chuckie Finster

March 30th, 2010

"So... how's school goin' for everyone?" I cringe at how awkward I sound.

Everyone's heads suddenly raise to look at me like they're startled to hear my voice or something. They probably are. It's been so quiet the entire time we've been at the Java Lava that it's almost painful. I want to get up and leave, and so does everyone else I'm sure. But for some reason, none of us have budged. It's been, maybe... a half an hour.

The plan was to come in, get drinks and hang out like back in middle school, when everyone got along better. But so far it's just been weird. It seemed like a good plan at first... and I don't remember who's idea this was. Maya's, I believe, after one night I got drunk and admitted to her how close we all used to be.

Even sober it seemed right. I didn't care much about seeing them when she first mentioned it, but the more time I've spent thinking about it, the more it bugged me that I haven't so much as spoken a few words to the people I grew up with (besides Tommy, Dil, and Carter) and could at one time call my best friends. So, here we are now... sitting around this table, sipping coffee and twirling our thumbs.

Maya's here too, sitting right across from me at the circular table in the back, between Lil and Kimi who haven't really even acknowledged each other since we've been here, thankfully. Beside Kimi is Phil, and while those two have exchanged a word or two, I can tell it's a little awkward for them to be sitting beside each other. Phil is beside me and on my other side are Dil and Tommy, who are the only ones who have been holding any type of conversation... except only with each other. And beside those two are two empty chairs... one for Suzie and another for Angelica.

Suzie texted me earlier saying she wasn't gonna be able to make it anyway, but Tommy told me Angelica was gonna be here. I can't say it'd be less awkward without them... but maybe it would, just a little.

"Well... I'm doing well, I think." Kimi says suddenly, and I almost forget what she's talking about until I remember my earlier question. "I'm pretty sure I have like... A's and B's in all of my classes."

Everyone nods in approval and mentions quietly that they're doing about the same and suddenly it goes quiet again.

"Don't you have... Mrs. Jarvis for homeroom?" Someone asks, and I notice it's Lil. Kimi doesn't respond at first and Lil just shrugs.

"I do," Kimi finally says dryly. "With Maya."

And Maya grins and looks around at everyone. "Gosh, guys. Don't all start at once." She says before she digs an orange-tinted bottle out of her bookbag on the floor. "I can't hear when you all speak over each other."

"What are those?" Phil asks and Lil glares pointedly at him. Maya notices this and waves her off.

"It's... no big deal, Lil. They're for anxiety." She says, shaking the bottle in his direction. "Don't worry, they're prescribed." She winks at him before she pops the bottle open and shakes a few out in the palm of her hand.

"I hope you aren't taking _all _of those." All of our heads swivel towards Tommy, who looks oddly bothered by what's happening. His eyes are flickering from the pills in her hand to her face as she plucks one between her fingers and drops the rest into the bottle.

Disappointment threatens to creep through her face, but she manages to keep smiling. I wonder if she realizes that I noticed. "Nah. Just one," she hums just before tossing the pill back and swallowing it with iced coffee. She looks down at her fingertips and her smile fades again only slightly. "Juuust one..."

"When did you start taking those?" Kimi asks quietly, only to be cut off by Lil.

"Don't worry about it, Kimi." She snaps defensively. We all go quiet again and surprisingly, Kimi doesn't have any smart response or even the fuel to argue with her. Lil points at Kimi, but her finger swivels around to all of us at the table. "No one should be worried. If she hasn't told you about it, then doesn't want to talk about it. Mind your damn business, all of you."

And just like that, Lil stands up from the table and waves Maya along with her. They're just a foot out the door and I hear Maya shout, "I'll see you guys later!" We all take one final look around the table and with a few absent goodbyes we get up, and we leave Java Lava without another word.

"Well that was awkward." Tommy quips as we step out of the air conditioning and into the sun.

I shrug my shoulders and pull my sunglasses away from the collar of my shirt to put them on my face. "What can we say, man. It was an honest effort." I almost laugh when I say those words. It was supposed to be sarcasm, but Tommy doesn't pick up on it.

Instead, he says, "Yeah... we tried." And he, Dil, and I step into my Camero. Then, it's like nothing ever happened. Tommy's moving us along to talks about parties and alcohol. He says, "So, I'm planning on having this Spring Break party, since our Back To School Bash was a success." And then he starts going into detail, but all I'm doing is nodding and pretending to listen.


	16. Phil Deville: i

AN: Here's Phil's chapter! Still tempted to post two... but I haven't built up enough chapters to do so, which sucks. Writer's block is a total whore and I want her to delete my number. Anyway, here you go guys! Read, review, enjoy. And don't hate me outta confusion! Everything you're curious about will be explained in later chapters! lol.

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Phil DeVille

March 30th, 2010

"That was forty-five minutes of my life I'd like to get back," Kimi cringes as she steps into my house and kicks off her flip flops. "Did you see Tommy's face? He doesn't look healthy. He's been drinking too much, I can tell." She's walking to my fridge and grabbing something to drink. "And Dil looked absolutely stoned off his ass. He barely spoke."

"Well, everyone was pretty quiet..." I mention. "Maybe it was just awkward for them, Kimi."

"You want something?" She says, holding the fridge door open and I shake my head so she slams it. "...And Maya and those pills, what was that?" She adds to her rant as she makes her way to the couch. I fight the urge to roll my eyes. Sure, the little 'Reunion' hangout at Java Lava wasn't as much as a success as it sounded like it'd be... but it couldn't have been that bad for Kimi to sit there at a table of people she'd at least been able to exchange words with in the past year.

I didn't speak to any of them aside from Lil, Maya, and Kimi. So it was way more awkward for me than for her, I'd imagine. The guys and I had stopped talking in the middle of Freshman year. Tommy and I had gotten into a little disagreement and ever since then, Dil and Chuckie have made it a point to stop being cool with me too. As if it was any of their business. I guess I could see how Chuck might have felt some way about everything, seeing as the whole reason Tommy and I stopped being friends was because of his sister. But Dil probably didn't even have an opinion formed about it. I'm guessing he just went with whatever his brother said.

I laugh to myself. If only Lil would listen to me as much... I guess that's because I'm not older than her. We're twins, as I'm sure you already know. And... up until high school, we used to be really close. It started around freshman year... as soon as I started playing football and getting well-known I was the only thing she'd ever hear about in school. Our teachers would always tell her about how good of a player I was, and how I'd probably get a scholarship someday and how well-behaved of a student I was. And all of our classmates would tell her how much we looked alike. She started hating me for it. I'd get yelled at every day after school, and it got so bad she eventually just avoided seeing me in the halls, even at home sometimes. So, if you ask Lil, being a twin is not that fun. She can't be her own person without me.

I hear her name somewhere outside of my thoughts and I realize that Kimi's still going on and on about today. Finally, I shush her by bringing her into my arms. Our foreheads touch and she smiles.

"Sorry..." She chuckles and I move a bit of hair out of her face.

"It's alright. Just... no more today, okay? Let's not talk about it anymore." And I kiss her. She lays back on the couch underneath me and I roll her shirt up. My fingers trace shapes on her smooth, flat stomach and she squirms.

"Stop that, Phil." She laughs, pulling me back into her again. She leans forward a bit and unhooks her bra from behind her, pulling it out from underneath her shirt. I lay her back down and cup one of her tits in my hand. I'm leaning into the crook of her neck so I start kissing and biting her now, and she's moaning in my ear. I feel myself start getting hard as she trails her hand down to my crotch.

Her eyebrows raise and she smiles coyly. "Okay, let's go upstairs..." And the next thing I know, she's throwing her bra over my shoulder and leading me to my bedroom.


	17. Lil Deville: ii

AN: Alright, I caved. Here's another chapter! Phil & Lil having chapters back to back is cute to me. But anywho... I'm gonna have to press myself to churn more out! Hmph! I'm trying! lol.

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Lil Deville

March 30th, 2010

"I wish I was an only child." It takes me by surprise when I hear myself blurt this. I'm almost in complete disbelief when I turn to look at Carter.

He smiles and cups my cheek in his hand, as if I haven't said anything stupid or crazy. "You look so scared to admit it..." He says slowly. "It's cool if you feel that way. Hell, it's good that you can say it out loud.. It's not like I've never felt like that. Imagine havin' as many brothers and sisters as me."

"You're right... You probably just want some privacy." I trail off and lay my head back down on his chest.

We were supposed to go out today. The two of us and Maya, we were supposed to go downtown into the city or something... or was it to the beach? See, the plan was... I was going to come to the Carmichaels and pick Carter up, and then we'd all hang out together. But somehow, Carter and I had ended up in bed, a little stoned and enjoying each other's company. We'd get up soon and we'd go pick up Maya from my house... but right now, it was too comfortable to get up.

"It's not even so much about the privacy..." Carter starts. "It was more or less the lack of attention we got from our parents. Dad was always too busy and Mom made herself busy. So, it was always Alisa, Buster, Edwin, Suzie, and I taking care of each other. It was a lot of work, but that's why we're all so tight to this day."

"So... you understand what I mean then? About always having to be around Phil and stuff?" I ask quietly and Carter just smiles.

"I do understand what you mean. But Phil's not the worst big brother in the world, Lil. I don't know him too well, but from I do know he'd do anything for you. You've had a little time to get some space from him... don't you think he misses you by now?"

I look down at our legs, tangled and trapped within each other. I look at my hands, threaded within Carter's much larger ones. I look up at him... his deep brown eyes and his full lips that I just love... and I realize the huge thing that sets Carter apart from Tommy.

And this finally makes me realize now that Maya was right. All those nights that I would find myself sobbing on her bed, she'd tell me that I was just putting myself in a relationship purgatory with Tommy Pickles and that it was hopeless until I could get myself out of there. Those were her words. And I didn't understand them at first, but now I do.

It meant was making myself unavailable to the other guys who might have provided something good for me just to be committed and loyal Tommy... even though he was never committed to me. Tommy never cared about my opinions or what was on my mind... or even my feelings. And I was settling for that and thinking that no one ever would... back then just having Tommy there for me was good enough. But now it's not... because I've finally found good enough.

After sitting in silence for a few minutes, I finally kiss Carter long and hard on the lips before I crawl out of his arms. "You don't mind if I change our plans a little bit, do you? I think I have some long overdue girl time with my best friend and... you're not a girl, so.. you're not invited." And I smile when Carter stands up in front of me and kisses my cheek.

"No problem, babe." We walk to the door holding hands and he says, "Call me tonight if you want. I won't be busy for the rest of the night." And we kiss each other again. As I turn to leave, Carter taps me lightly on the ass with the back of his hand and I jab him in the arm.

I walk to my car and I can't stop smiling.

I get home quicker than usual it seems... and no one is downstairs so I make my way to my room when I notice Phil and... a girl that I quickly realize is Kimi standing in the bathroom doorway. I hear the faintest sound of retching and I drop everything.

"No... no, no... Maya!" I scream, pushing the two lovebirds out of the way. I drop to my knees and quickly start combing her hair out of her face. "Why the fuck are you two just standing there!" I scream, turning to Phil and Kimi. "What happened?!"

Kimi starts stammering and Phil quickly runs to my room and comes back with an orange tinted bottle, damn near empty. The same bottle that Maya was fishing pills out of at the Java Lava table not too long ago. I flag him over to me.

We patiently wait, sitting beside each other on the bathtub while Maya finally finishes throwing up. She lifts her head and she looks bad. Really bad. Immediately I tell Phil to call our Aunt Sheri. She's a doctor at a downtown Los Angeles hospital.

Maya hears the word hospital and looks up, her eyes red and welled up with tears. "No-!" She chokes. Spits out more puke and finally flushes the toilet. "No hospital... please, I'm fine..."

"Fine? You tried to overdose on pills, you're not fine!" Kimi wails and I whip my head around to glare at her.

"She tried to overdose and you're still standing there doing nothing?" I hiss. "Go downstairs and get her a glass of water. Make yourself useful."

Kimi's eyes darken, but I know she doesn't have the guts to say anything in this predicament. She turns without another word and leaves the room and I sit down on the floor, pulling Maya into my arms.

"God, what happened to you?" I say, hugging her. Surprisingly, she hugs me back. Maya's never been the touchy-feely type. I don't bother to ask about it. "I leave you here for a measly hour..." Saying this, I instantly regret it. But she laughs anyway.

She pulls back from my shoulder and smiles at me, but her voice is still weak from barfing and she's slurring just a little. "I'm sorry, Lil... It's been a long day." She breathes heavily again and I hear tears threatening to sneak up from her shaky voice.

"This has to do with your mom, doesn't it.. I told you before... you don't have to deal with that! You're always welcome to stay here. My parents absolutely love you." I say but Maya doesn't respond right away. She leans into me and her smile disappears.

"She was belligerent when I got home today. Absolutely destroyed." She doesn't look up but moves her mouth away from my shoulder so I can hear her better. "And she starts telling me how... I'm not my father's child, the father I've known my whole life. And how badly she wanted an abortion while she was carrying me. Manny and I ruined her life. She told me how she looks me in my face every day... and sees a mistake."

I don't mind how her sentences are crossing over each other. She's gotta be very high from the pills but at least she's talking... At least she's alive.

Kimi finally returns with the glass of water and I want to shush Maya from talking but she just continues and I let her. How can I stop her when she's finally getting everything off her chest? "I can hardly stand when she's around... but you know, Lil, it's never been this bad. I wish she'd just go back to... wherever she disappears off to... my own mother told me that I don't deserve to be alive." And she starts crying again and leans into my chest.

It's a long twenty minutes of Maya crying. My arms are wrapped around her and I notice she's shaking and sweating. After she manages to calm down a little, Kimi goes to hand her the glass of water. Phil comes back after a few minutes and hands Maya another pill.

"What's that?" Kimi says, alarmed.

"A drug to counteract the side effects." He says calmly as he stoops down to Maya. "Listen... our Aunt Sheri is here... We're not going to take you to the hospital, but she wants to have a look at you. Is that alright?"

"Yeah..." She mutters weakly. "It's alright."


End file.
